Never Walk it Off
by sakanascales876
Summary: When monsters appear, a friend of Usagi's is taken, and she wants revenge. Now burdened being a Soldier of Justice, she must find her allies and the monster liable for her misery, but a certain Tux-Boy will try to stop her from destroying herself...try.
1. Chapter 1

Well, well, well. Look what we have here! An update? Shall I alert the media? Well, just to say, I actually have  
a passion for writing _and_ finishing this story, so you should expect to see an update for it every once in a while.  
I'm also working on another story, and am currently under the revision processes of all my other ones. The  
three that have been left on my profile wont be there long, or they might. But sooner or later, whether it's in  
weeks, months, years, millenia, I will update and finish them. Because I can save documents so there.  
Well, I hope you enjoy this story, and let me tell you it is in the First season, but it is going to turn out  
nothing like you'd expect it would.

By the way, Sailor Moon isnt mine, and I havent taken her or her Senshi or Tuxedo Kamen(unfortunately)  
hostage. But Tamotsu is mine. And I know he doesn't exist in the *real* SM, but this isn't like the *real*  
SM, no is it?

-fishyscales ;)

* * *

The sweltering red eyes observed her from the open window, her black camoflaugue making her entirely imperceptible in the sinister night. The translucent, lavender curtains tickled her nose as she tried desperately to see into the dazzlingly bright bedroom, curling herself into a corner of the balcony.

And as she watched, she found herself gazing at the near full moon out of the corner of her eyes, sending it a silent prayer.

_Please let her be the one._

Oh God, she hoped that this was the right one, because if she wasn't, they were all goners.

* * *

Fourteen year old Usagi slumped over at the table, making her back hunch worse than Doctor Frankenstein's assistant, Igor. Her aqua eyes gazed boredly at the checkered table cloth, and she began to debate with herself on whether or not she could still try and feign sickness to get out of class.

But as her older brother sauntered through the door, the idea was forgotten immediately.

"Tamotsu-onii-san!" Usagi cried, launching herself into his open arms like a rocket.

Her mother, Ikuko, immediately abandoned her cooking on the stove and gave her son a warm hug, tenderly kissing his cheek.

"My, my," she said, waggling a finger. "What have you been eating, Tamotsu? You've already grown taller than me!"

He chuckled and pulled up a chair to the table, turning it around and sitting as though he were straddling it. A large, crispy waffle was placed on his plate, and before Ikuko could say anything, he was already drowning the poor thing with syrup.

Usagi gleefully inhaled her waffle, dropping her fork back onto her plate as she leant back in contentment.

"So, where's Shingo?" Tamotsu asked through a mouthful of cakey dough. "You might want to give him one of those waffles before Usa-chan eats them all."

"Hey!" Usagi cried indignantly. "I only had one!"

"I swear we could feed an army of Tanzanian children with all the food she eats."

Ikuko gave him a look of warning. "Leave her be, Tamo. And to answer your question, Shingo is upstairs with a fever of one hundred and two, so you need to keep quiet."

He shrugged and leant forward on the chair. "How's everything doing here?"

Ikuko waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, same old, same old. How's your job been for you?"

Tamotsu pursed his lips and winked at her. "It's good. But that reminds me; I've got to go soon. Work starts in an hour."

"Promise that you'll come to dinner Friday night?" Ikuko asked.

He put his hands in front of him. "You know that I'd never miss out on one of your meals, mom."

She smiled at him and presumed to turn off all the burners on the stove.

Tamotsu turned to Usagi and took another bite out of his waffle. "How's school going, Usa-chan?"

Usagi sighed and rolled her eyes. "Same old, same old."

He winced. "That bad, huh?"

She nodded.

"Failing any classes?"

She smirked at him. "Four."

His eyes popped out like popcorn, and he let out a low whistle. "I'm proud of you sis. Four classes… that's genius! I only failed three."

Ikuko scowled and swatted him on the head. "You set such a poor example for her!"

"I made it out of college, didn't I?"

She huffed and leant back against the counter. "Barely! And if Usagi's grades don't improve soon, someone is going to be grounded," she said with a stern look towards her daughter.

Tamotsu nodded mockingly. "She's right Usa-chan. Grades are very important."

He winked at her and she could barely stifle a giggle as Ikuko glared at her oldest son. Instead of proceeding to scold him, she turned back to the sink and began washing the dishes.

"Who do you have as your teacher this year?" he asked.

Usagi moaned and buried her head in her hands. "Haruna! She's going to be the end of me!"

"Ooooh," Tamotsu said. "That's got to be rough. As much as she hated me, I bet that she has your picture on her dartboard now."

Usagi frowned. "That rumor's true?"

He shrugged. "One never knows. But I do know that she only hates you 'cuz of me."

"Gee, thanks."

"You're very welcome."

He leant across the table and motioned her to follow his lead until they were face to face. "So, got any boyfriends that I'm gonna have to beat up yet?"

Usagi blushed as Ikuko suddenly turned around and averted her attention to her. "N-no!" she gasped.

Tamotsu sat back down smugly. "Good. It would be a shame to have to break that poor boy's face."

He cracked his knuckles threateningly and Usagi couldn't help but giggle.

Tamotsu suddenly jolted from the chair, turning it back around and hurriedly grabbing his car keys. "Oops! Gonna be late for work. Love you, mom." He lifted an invisible hat from his head. "Usa-chan."

Ikuko turned and called out the door. "Do you want Usagi to bring you lunch today?"

"That sounds great! I'll see you Saturday! Tell dad I say hi!"

Ikuko sighed as she heard the engines rev and screech down the street.

And it was that moment that Usagi found herself slapping her forehead with a groan. She had just let her free ride to school get away.

* * *

The morning went by relatively easy; she got yelled at by Ms. Haruna for being late, flunked a math quiz, bumped into the strange Amazon girl that was twice her height. But now that it was lunch break, Usagi figured that she had a lot of amusing stuff to tell her brother.

Walking out of the school courtyard, Usagi waved to her best friend Naru who was sitting next to her 'friend,' Umino as they shared lunch together.

Naru quickly abandoned his side and ran over to her. "Where are you going?" she asked.

"Gotta deliver some lunch."

Her red head friend raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "To who?"

"Tamotsu-onii-san."

Naru winked. "I wish your brother was a bit younger. He's so cute and sweet that I'd date him."

"Uh…thank you?" Usagi said.

Umino suddenly appeared behind her. "You think Tamotsu-kun is cute? He's got nothing on me!"

He pounded his chest for emphasis, resulting in him doubling over in pain and couching and sputtering on the ground.

They both giggled and turned away from him. "Do you want to come with me?"

Naru pursed her lips and shook her head. "Nah…I've got to make sure that Mr. Galaxy over here doesn't get a concussion."

Usagi laughed and waved goodbye, making her way out of the school.

Humming merrily to herself, she traipsed through the hustling streets of Tokyo, looking at the plethora of people that came with it.

She turned the familiar corner and was shocked to see that there was a colossal crowd gathered outside of the tall, glass building, each of them wearing terrified expressions on their faces. Security and Police Officers were ushering them away from the area, and she gasped as she saw around twelve armored trucks pull into the vicinity.

Usagi scurried over the crowd, pushing her way through the people and ignoring the dirty looks they were throwing her way.

She was about to run to the front entrance when a cop stopped her, grabbing her by the arms and trying to get her to stop struggling.

"What's going on?" Usagi cried, tears forming in her eyes as she frantically looked past the man towards the building.

"You can't go in there, miss."

Usagi slapped his arm and shrieked, "Why not?"

He winced. "I'm afraid that there's some kind of…creature running around in there and getting people."

She looked at him like he was proclaiming that Kanye West was a Saint. "What do you mean a 'creature'?"

He sighed and ran a head through his black hair. "I-I don't know. There was some freaky looking thing in there blasting off the walls. Most managed to get out, but…" he looked worriedly towards the tower. "Some people haven't come out yet."

Panic and fear struck Usagi's heart like an arrow. "Have the police gone in there yet to help them?" she found herself asking in a quivering voice.

"No," he said. "They haven't sent anyone in there, and I think that they just don't know what to do. This…this thing was blowing up everyone and everything! And it was killing everyone it saw!"

"How many people did you see come out?" she asked gripping one of his forearms.

He shook his head frantically. "I-I don't know! I was just told to keep these crowds back!"

"Do you know if a man named Tsukino Tamotsu came out?"

The man shook his head solemnly. "I don't know, miss. I don't know anything more than what you just heard."

Usagi's shoulders shook as tears started to streak down her porcelain face. With a burst of adrenaline, she tried to push past the officer, but he grabbed her before she could run anywhere.

"Let me go!" She sobbed, clawing into the man's arms as another security guard tried to hold her back. "I have to find him! Tamotsu-onii-san!"

"You can't go in there! It's unsafe!"

"I don't care!" she shrieked. "I have to save him!"

They both tried to calm the screaming girl down, but before they could do anything, she landed a hard kick at one of the officer's stomachs, and dashed off towards the front entrance. She ignored the cries she heard behind her as she rushed through the sliding doors.

The lobby was in chaos. All the lights looked like they had been shot at, leaving the room in a dimly lit atmosphere. The front desk was on fire, but it was covered in blood and scratch marks, papers scattered and shredded across the linoleum floor.

But on the floor…she gasped and looked away, sinking to her knees as she silently bit her shirt in an attempt of silencing her screams.

Clawed up, burned, and broken bodies were scattered around the floor, most of them covered in debris from the crumbling ceiling and the shattered glass.

There must have been at least a dozen men and women there, each of them damaged beyond recognition.

Usagi's shoulders shook as tears cascaded down her face, and she knew that if she kept it up, she would begin to hyperventilate. She quickly tried to stop her heavy breathing, thinking only of the determination she had to save her brother. She _had_ to help him. She_ had_ to get him out of there.

With trembling legs, she stood, closing her eyes as she walked past the bodies toward the stair well. She opened the dented door with a slight push, and was not surprised that in there too were many dead people. Half of the wall of the second floor had been blown off, and Usagi was nearly breaking as she climbed up the rubble crusted stairs, the death and destruction expanding its work the higher she climbed.

Finally, she reached her brother's floor, reaching out a hand and grasping the cold handle in a death grip. She pushed open the heavy door, peeking into the inside. Half of the wall was on fire, but other than that, there was nobody in there.

She slowly walked in, checking around every desk and corner to make sure that nothing was going to pop out at her.

She followed the familiar path, and found herself at the remnants of her brother's desk, and she saw the thing that she was most dreading.

Her brother was dead upon the floor.

She immediately sunk to his side, grasping his head as his eyes were fluttering open and closed. A gash was across his stomach, and there was a file cabinet resting on his left leg. Usagi struggled with herself on whether or not hse should go and try to find someone to help her. She was about to get up when she heard him call to her.

"Usa-chan?" he muttered.

Usagi nodded shakily as she tried to control her sobs. "I-I'm here, T-Tamotsu."

He smiled, tears glistening in his eyes. "I love ya sis."

She shakily inhaled a breath, and she frantically shook her head. "No! You l-look at me. D-don't you dare die on me, Tamotsu!" she shrieked, burying her head in his chest as she clenched his shirt.

He chuckled, the sound raspy in her ears. "It won't be so bad, sis. You'll finally get my perks of being oldest."

She glared at him with ferocious tears in her eyes. "T-that's not funny!"

He grinned, but his eyes began to flutter shut. "I'm sorry, Usa-chan. But you need to get out of here; it's not safe."

She shook her head. "I'm not leaving without you!"

He grasped her hand tightly, and Usagi winced at the pain. "You're in charge now. It's your responsibility to take care of mom and dad."

"Stop talking like that!" she shrieked.

He stared into her eyes. "Get out of here now Usagi. That thing that attacked us was not human. You have to get out of here!"

He coughed, and Usagi could see blood starting to form at his lips.

"Tamotsu!" she cried.

"I love you, sis. Tell mom I'm sorry, but I'm not going to make it to dinner on Friday."

The blood began to pool from his mouth, but his eyes closed, and his head tilted to the side.

"Tamotsu!" Usagi screamed. "Tamotsu-onii-san! Wake up! Please wake up!"

She sobbed as she clutched his chest, not caring that she was getting covered in blood. Her nails practically tore holes through the collar of his shirt as she held it in a death grip. He was gone…her older brother was gone.

"How sad."

Usagi gasped in between her tears to come face to face with what resembled a woman and a wolf. She had flaming red hair and pale black eyes on her sickly white skin. Her fox tail wagged back and forth as her claws as long as steak knives were in front of her face.

Instead of being utterly terrified, Usagi found herself growing more livid each second.

"You did this, didn't you," she whispered, staring the creature directly in the eye.

She smirked and nodded, drawing the claws back behind her head and readying to strike.

"Your turn," she mocked.

Usagi dodged the claws and ran around to the other side of the desk.

"This is all your fault!" she shrieked, tears of anger falling from her eyes.

The woman shrugged and held out her hand. At first Usagi didn't see it, but as it grew brighter, Usagi recognized it in a second.

There was a flame growing from her hand.

Usagi stared at her in utter horror and shock as the flame grew into a giant sphere, cackling and contorting itself as the woman raised it above her head and launched it at her.

Usagi barely had time to regain her thoughts as she felt someone yank her out of the way and toss them both onto the floor.

She heard the explosion, but the only thing she saw was the black material of what looked like a suit jacket. Looking down, she saw a man wearing a tuxedo and masquerade mask, staring straight back into her eyes as well.

"Who are you?" she breathed.

"You'll never know."

The voice was low and dangerous, and as she felt herself being hoisted up back onto her feet, she realized how intimidating he was. His frame was much taller and muscular than hers, putting all body builders to shame as he showed off his obvious muscle, yet didn't look overly big and beefy at all.

She turned to where the wall had been struck and covered her hand over her mouth. The entire side of the floor had been blown to pieces, and a sudden realization flicked on in her head. One more second…and that would have been her.

She turned to the masked man and threw her arms around him, sobbing into his chest. She felt his obvious discomfort, and his shoulders tense, but she didn't care.

Slowly, she felt him wrap uncertain arms around her, rubbing up and down her back in an attempt to soothe her. It was oddly comforting, and Usagi seemed to forget where she was and what had happened for a minute as she buried herself in his embrace.

After a few moments, she finally stopped crying. Usagi let go of him and stepped back, looking bravely into his icy blue eyes.

"Where did that fox lady go?" she asked in a trembling voice.

"She left," was all he said.

"Left?"

He turned away from her. "Went back to where she came from."

"Where is that?"

He frowned at her. "Do you always ask so many questions?"

"You don't seem to be providing sufficient answers."

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Listen, I'll escort you out of here, but we need to leave soon; this building's going down."

Usagi closed her eyes tightly and shook her head defiantly. "No…I can't leave without him."

"Without who?"

She bit her bottom lip as it quivered. She didn't want to be weak in front of this man, her savior, no matter how rude he many have been.

Instead, she pointed over towards Tamotsu's desk, and she found herself being pulled along with him over to the area.

Usagi couldn't take it when she saw his crumpled form lying on the ground, and she turned her head away as she sobbed.

He waited until her tears subsided to turn to her and say, "Your boyfriend?"

Although it she found his voice dark and emotionless, she sensed a small undertone of bitterness.

But nonetheless, she shook her head painfully.

"My brother," she croaked.

"I'm sorry." And this time, he _did_ sound sorry, but Usagi couldn't help the tears from falling down her face anyways.

"We need to get out of here."

She shook her head. "I'm not leaving without him."

The man turned towards Tamotsu. "He's dead."

Usagi swatted his arm away from hers. "My parents will _not_ be burying his empty casket."

The building began to shake, but although she was terrified, Usagi stood her ground.

"Listen, we have no time---"

Another tremble rocked the building, stopping him in mid-sentence.

"I'm not going."

He growled and took her by the arm, and the last thing she saw before darkness fell upon her, was his piercing blue eyes, and a distinct mutter of, "Stupid girl!"

* * *

She awoke to the distinct aura of dread in her body. Her eyes fluttered open only to find herself in a room full of white, though there were two things sitting by her bed that were not white at all.

"Mom…dad?" she croaked.

Her parent immediately turned to her, and she found herself enveloped in a hug.

Her mom's eyes were swollen and puffy, tears still streaking down her cheeks, and she found with surprise and sorrow that her dad looked the same.

"Are you alright?" her dad, Kenji asked.

She nodded, though it felt as though her heart has just shattered.

"Mom…I'm so sorry."

Ikuko looked at her and gently brushed the hair out of her daughter's face.

"What for?" she whispered.

"I-I saw him. He told me he loved you guys, but I couldn't save him!"

Kenji grasped her daughter's hand. "Honey, it's not your fault."

Usagi shook her head as she cried. Ikuko buried her face in her hands and silently wept as Kenji held Usagi softly and rocked her back and forth.

"It's all my fault!" she sobbed.

"Shh," he whispered. "Usagi, this is not your fault at all. Nobody could have known that this was going to happen, and I'm so sorry that it did."

Usagi said nothing but continued to cry into his ruffled shirt.

"We're so glad you're okay," he said after a while.

Usagi stopped and got off the white bed that she had been resting on. "Where are we?"

"Hospital," Ikuko choked out as she dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief. "They said that they found you in the emergency room, but they couldn't tell us who had brought you."

Usagi remembered the man in the mask, how his sardonic personality had chilled her bones. But she wouldn't tell her parents this, for it even sounded ridiculous in her own mind.

"How long have I been out?"

"Only a couple of hours."

She stared out the blank window into the night sky, noticing how not even the stars held their usual shine.

"Did they catch the monster that did this?"

Ikuko shook her head. "It just disappeared. The building collapsed---"she broke off into a silent pause for a moment before taking a shaky breath and continuing, "but officials are looking through the rubble right now to identify bodies."

Usagi felt a sickening feeling drop into her stomach. "Have they found…him?" she asked hesitantly.

Kenji looked at his feet before saying quietly, "No."

Usagi felt like crying, but she felt as though she didn't even deserve the right to cry about it in front of her parents. It wasn't fair.

"Where's Shingo?" she managed to gasp.

"Grandma and Grandpa's."

Usagi felt her shoulders begin to tremble, and she found herself sitting on the bed before she found herself collapsing on the floor.

"I'm sorry."

Kenji looked up from his folded hands.

"It's not your fault."

Usagi looked painfully out the window, watching as all the cars went by her, not even seeming to care that her brother was dead.

"I know."

It wasn't her fault; it was that fox woman's fault. And Usagi felt a new tinge in her heart. Whoever, _whatever_ that woman was, she was going to pay with blood.

* * *

Outside the hospital window, a small animal sat on the window and shook her head with worry and grief. It's just too soon. Sighing heavily, she refocused on the family, but her mind kept straying to what had just happened. The enemy was already here, and the Earth needed someone to fight.

Oh yes, she was the one.

* * *

Let me know what you thought of that. Like it? Hate it? Criticism in constructive and builds strong bones, just like milk.  
Until next time....Please review. ;)


	2. Chapter 2

Yeah, I know it's kind of a bit late, but hey, at least I'm providing, right?  
Yeah, dont answer that one. Ha, I really do believe that I have passion  
to finish this story, along with another one that I've currently been writing.  
Maybe you'll actually get to read them by the end of this millenia. Who  
knows? But I need to know which story that I'm going to start revising first.  
1. None Shall Fair When Love is War

2. Plunging Swords

Let me know which I should start and get posted first. But, on with the story.

* * *

Never Walk it Off

Chapter 2

By sakanascales876

* * *

It was bizarre. An uneasy bizarreness that seemed as though something was going to pop out at you any second. And that was how she felt. Hoping, praying, beseeching that everything was going to be okay and that Tamotsu was going to just jump out of the nearest bush and scream, "Gotcha!"

But he didn't.

And he never did make it to dinner that Friday night.

The funeral had been completely awkward for her, seeing all of the family there to mourn the death of her older brother. And worse, even his rowdy friends from college and work didn't seem as crazy as before, for they were all in tears for the entire duration of the funeral.

Ikuko almost seemed dead, Usagi noticed. The older woman appeared to haunt the hallways of their house, mostly staying in her bed for the whole day, rarely eating and rarely sleeping.

Her father had dealt with everything. His possessions, car, apartment, and funeral arrangements, and Usagi noticed that his shoulders now lagged and his eyes looked like they were about to drop off his face out of the misery.

Both she and Shingo had been sent to therapy before they had been sent back to school a week later; Usagi's being much more intensive than her younger brother's.

They had asked and probed her about everything. The school, the crowd, running past the police officers, and going through the building as she was surrounded by the dead before she got to see her very own brother die. But she didn't tell anyone about the masked man, or the creature. She simply said that she heeded her brother's warnings and left the building before passing out and being taken to the hospital.

School had seemed much worse compared to that, though. Everyone was giving her their condolences, gifts, balloons, flowers, and anything that they could possibly fit into a locker, adding salt onto the mortal wounds. She hadn't noticed how final it was until then…that her brother really _was_ dead, and that he wasn't coming back.

Even Ms. Haruna didn't find any bones to pick with her, helping her somewhat kindly catch up with all the school work she had missed, and even going so far as to extending a quiz date so that she would get extra time to study.

A month passed, and her books still remained untouched.

She found herself growing distant with everyone, even her family, Naru, and Umino. She found herself eating less and less, and she would go straight to school and go straight home. Nobody would say that they didn't like the new, responsible, serious Usagi, but they missed her optimism and kindness even more.

The bell rang shrilly, but in Usagi's ears, it sounded dull and bitter. She slowly rose from her chair and walked out of the school as quickly as she could in order to avoid an over worried Naru and a concerned Umino.

The streets of Tokyo that once filled her with a sense of avid curiosity now filled her with nothing, a void starting to tear away at her already cracked heart. She missed him so much, his ability to always make her laugh and smile, the tips on how to survive the Haruna, and even the way he threatened any chance she would ever have at getting a boyfriend.

So despondent was she, she almost didn't see the black cat curled up on the ground.

She gasped to see it badly beaten and bruised, a band aid on its forehead. Without warning, she picked it up, noticing how it immediately tensed and struggled until it looked in her eyes, quickly calming down and purring against her chest.

Looking around, Usagi found herself walking into some place called, 'Crown Fruit Parlor,' slowly approaching the counter and ringing the bell.

A nearby boy in an apron ran over and slid smoothly, throwing the dishtowel he was holding into the air and catching it.

"Furuhata Motoki. Nice to meet you---whoa, what is that?"

"Uh, I found this cat outside and I was wondering…uh---"she paused, looking at the amused expression on his face. "Do you have anything that I could use to fix her up?"

Motoki conspicuously looked back and forth around the nearly empty arcade and leaned over to whisper, motioning her to do the same. Just like Tamotsu, she thought.

"Between you and me, there's a back room here with supplies. So I have to ask you one question," he whispered with a grin on his face.

"What?" Usagi asked nervously.

"Do you like my apron?"

Had she been drinking anything, Usagi was sure that she would have choked on it. "E-excuse me?"

"Do you. Like my. Apron?" he said again louder.

"Uh, do I like your apron? I err---"she looked at the simple white apron and back to the man's face to check whether he was serious or not. He looked as though he was trying desperately to conceal his laughter, and he was. Usagi then smiled too and giggled.

She tapped her finger to her chin in thought. "I would have to say that your apron is…absolutely sexy."

He smiled and nodded. "Good answer; let's go."

Leading her into the back room, Usagi found herself liking this man more and more. He reminded her of her…brother in a way.

Pulling out a set of keys and unlocking a cabinet, Motoki grabbed a blanket and some bandages and began to gingerly wrap up the cat.

When turning it over, he paused and said, "What's this thing on its forehead?"

Usagi walked over to him and glanced at the cat's head. A little, crescent moon bald spot rested there, and Usagi couldn't help but reach out and touch it.

As her finger pressed lightly over the spot, she found that it was not skin, but it were as if gold had been carved into the stray's head. A warm, pulsating energy filled within her and the cat slowly opened its eyes.

Sweltering, cinnamon eyes.

Usagi gasped and looked away, ignoring the concerned look on Motoki's face.

"Well, I guess we could just leave it here for a little while to rest, ne?"

"Sounds good. By the way," Usagi asked. "What is this place?"

Motoki walked out of the room and pulled her along with him, waving his arm theatrically around the area, making Usagi giggle.

"This is the Crown Fruit Parlor, aka awesomest place on Earth!" he cried, running behind the counter and grabbing his dish rag.

Usagi shrugged teasingly. "Never heard of it."

He winked at her. "You don't know what you've been missing then."

She laughed and sat on one of the peeled bar stools, spinning around once before stopping to face him.

"If you don't mind me asking," Motoki said. "Why'd you come here?"

Usagi raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So you don't want me to tell all my friends about this wonderful place you've got here---"

Motoki waved his hand in front of her face. "No! I just meant, why would you run in here of all places?"

"I don't know. Why would I think of which I place I should run into when there's a dying cat in my arms?" she asked sarcastically.

He paused. "Oh."

Usagi bit her lip to keep from laughing. "Yeah, 'cuz had I known that _this_ was the place I was running into, I would have turned around and ran to the dump instead."

Motoki laughed. "You're just jealous because I'm the one wearing the absolutely sexy apron."

Usagi waved her hand nonchalantly. "Obviously."

He leaned on the counter and looked at her. "I didn't catch your name."

Usagi smirked and lifted an imaginary hat off her head. "The name's Usagi. Tsukino Usagi."

"Well Usagi, would you like a milkshake on the house?"

Usagi almost jumped over the counter and gave him a hug. "Hell yeah!"

He laughed and began to fix one for her. "Today's been really slow, but I can't blame anyone. With all these monsters attacking everyone, I'd be afraid to let my kids leave the house."

Usagi stopped and stared at her hands. "Yeah," she muttered.

He placed the milkshake in front of her. "And did you hear about that office building that got blown up? Over two hundred people died! And that was only by one of those freaky things! God help us if they swarm us in armies."

Usagi looked away from him. "Yeah, my brother was in that building."

Motoki suddenly felt really stupid. "Oh, I'm so sorry---"

Usagi smiled up at him. "Don't be."

A strange silence filled in the large room until the bell on the sliding doors rang. They both turned to see a man standing there, his black hair hanging damply over his forehead, laden with textbooks and a backpack.

Usagi's breath hitched. Something about this man was utterly familiar, and it wasn't a good feeling, either.

"Hey, Motoki-kun. Real scorcher out there, ne?"

His voice was low, and it bothered Usagi how much he resembled the man from the building.

"Yeah, I've got the air on full blast. Mamoru-kun, this is my new friend Usagi-chan." Motoki gestured towards her, and Usagi really wished that he hadn't, for when Mamoru looked at her, his icy blue eyes hardened and he looked away.

"Nice to meet you," he said.

Motoki groaned and put his head in his hands. "I was so bored until she got here. There have only been like five people in here today. These damn monsters are gonna run this place out of business!"

Mamoru nodded. "Though that is bad, I can see how parents wouldn't want their kids running around after school with everything going on."

He turned to Usagi, and it looked as though he were accusing her of something. She shivered and looked away, staring nervously down at her hands.

"Motoki-san," she said in a weak voice. "I think I should take that cat home now."

He nodded and proceeded to walk with her into the back room, gingerly placing the sleeping feline in her arms.

"What's that?" Mamoru asked.

"Cat."

Mamoru rolled his eyes. "Why is it here?"

"I found it near the street so I brought it here."

He said nothing, but stared at her with slanted eyes, analyzing her every move.

"Need help taking that home?" Motoki asked.

Usagi shifted the weight of the cat into her other arm. "Nope; I'm good."

He smiled cordially, waving as she made her way to the sliding doors. "See ya, Usagi! Be sure to visit again!"

"I will!"

As she made her way down the desolate streets, the cat began to purr in her arms, and Usagi couldn't help but look down at the feline.

"Whoa…that's weird!" she gasped as she stared straight into blazing red eyes that scrutinized her every feature.

The cat looked as though it almost had frowned, and Usagi found herself regretting taking the cat home even more.

As she walked down the darkening streets, she realized that Tokyo no longer held its' same splendor and shine. The people looked dull, the streets looked dim, and nothing seemed to matter anymore. She didn't care where those people were going or why they were doing what they were doing, but she wondered whether any of them had been affected by the recent monster attacks so drastically like she had.

And she only realized that she had bumped into someone when the cat started to furiously struggle in her arms. Looking up, she realized that it was the weird Amazonian girl that went to her school.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Usagi said nervously as she got up quickly and brushed herself off.

"It's fine."

"Well, I'll just be going then," she giggled as she tried to walk past the girl, but to no avail.

The girl crossed her arms over her chest. "Why are you holding a cat?"

Usagi rolled her eyes and sighed. "It's all the rage in London."

The girl giggled. "The name's Makoto. Aren't you the girl that stands outside of Haruna's class with a bucket of water on her head?"

"Guilty. The name's Usagi," she said, lifting an invisible hat from her head, something that she had found herself doing a lot more ever since her brother had died.

"Why does she hate you so much?" Makoto asked.

Usagi shrugged. "I haven't a clue, but I'm quite sure that I'm the picture on her dartboard."

"That rumor's true?"

Usagi laughed. "Who knows? That lady's crazy."

Makoto nodded in agreement. "She is. Well, it was nice talkin' to you, Usagi-san. See you at school tomorrow!"

She was gone. And Usagi realized that the cat had been staring at her disappearing form the entire way.

Usagi continued her way home, surprised that the cat had ceased its' struggles for the most part.

"I'm stuck with you, aren't I?" she asked.

And if her heart wasn't in such a jumble, and her brain wasn't so fried due to lack of sleep, she would have sworn that the cat had said, "Yes."

* * *

Next chapter is one that I will prefer to write much more, but there has to  
be a beginning to everything, I guess. I hope you enjoyed this chapter,  
or at least were satisfied with it enough to wait for the next one. Please  
review, it makes me happy and is one great inspiration builder. Criticism  
it constructive and builds stronh bones, just like milk. Until next time.......  
sakanascales876


	3. Chapter 3

Well, here I am! Wow, this is one quick update, especially for me!  
But the only reason that this is happening is because Halloween is  
this weekend and that's always a busy weekend for me, so I  
promised myself that I would at least get this chapter out before  
the weekend.

I seem to have forgotten my disclamer so far...how dare I?  
Don't own Sailor Moon. Never have, never will.

But I am a bit sad, for no one answered my question before:

Which story should I revise first? None Shall Fair When Love is War,  
or Plunging Swords, (I prefer the first one! ;)) But it's up to what you  
want me to write though, eh?

Thank you to all my reviewers. You are very appreciated, and I'm sorry  
that I'm not going to adress each one seperately, but I got one so long  
that I couldn't resist.

**xGekkeiju:** thanks for the review, and I hope this chapter satisfies you.  
Thank you for the Constructive Criticism, for I have noticed something  
that I'm going to be working on for the rest of the story. Although I do  
believe that Usagi was a little OOC in her scene with Motoki, it was  
necessary. When I lost my older brother, I went through the same thing.  
My entire personality changed, and I looked for anything that would  
cheer me up, so I kind of based Usagi's attitued on that, but I now  
realize that this is Usagi we're talking about, so I'm going to work  
on the whole angst-but-keep-her-in-character thing. :) And about the  
police guy, I don't know if I was clear or not, so forgive me if I wasn't,  
but I believe I wrote that he was just a security guard from the building,  
so his instructions would have been short an brief to keep the people  
back as the youma ran her little rampage around the building, but  
thank you for bring that to my attention, and if it doesn't make sense,  
I can change it. Thank you so much for the review, and I hope you  
enjoy this chapter! ;) -Fishy

And now that my ramblings are finished...enjoy.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Never Walk it Off

Chapter 3

by sakanascales876

------------------------------------------------------------------

Her mom had gone nuts when she had brought the cat home. And not in the bad way either. She basically clawed the cat out of Usagi's arms and began to frantically nurse it back to health. And while she enjoyed seeing her mom so enthused about something, Usagi just had to get out of the house and breathe.

Sighing, she quickly grabbed her jacket and rushed out the door before anyone could stop her. The moon was a sliver in the sky, creating barely any light to illuminate her path as she blindly stumbled about the streets of Tokyo. It was eerie how the crowded streets seemed to be completely barren at such a late hour. All of the lights of the city were still burning brightly, but there were no people to marvel at them.

It seemed that people really were taking this monster business seriously, Usagi noted. No one wanted to be a target, and no one wanted to be caught out so late at night alone.

But there she was, under the cold street light, scared and alone.

Perhaps Motoki's place would still be open this late at night, or she could even put up with Naru's concern long enough to get a ride home. But she quickly crumpled the idea and threw it away. The last thing she wanted right then was to see Naru, and the worried expression she would have on her face when Usagi told her that she was fine.

Sighing, she continued the direction she was going, finding her feet slowly taking her to Juban Park, a place that she hadn't trodden in for over six years, finding the playgrounds being replaced with boys and manga.

Sitting on a bench, she buried her head in her hands, letting all her sorrows out in an anguished sob. The whole ordeal kept playing like a broken record in her mind, something that not even her therapist had been able to weasel out of her.

"Hey there, little girl."

Usagi gasped and looked up, expecting nothing more than to look up into the face of some rapist or serial killer, but after seeing who she was dealing with, she wished it had been the former.

She stood up quickly and trotted nervously around the bench, trying to put some space between her and the monster that was slowly pacing towards her.

"W-what do you want from me?" she stuttered.

The beast stepped closer, magnifying the burgundy colored skin and the dagger silver claws in the moonlight. Its teeth were barred in an unearthly grin, making her shiver as she watched the billowing cloak it wore flutter in the wind.

"Energy," it hissed, raising up one clawed arm to strike.

She yelped as she dove backwards, watching in terror as the bench she had just occupied was no more than splinters anymore. A distinct burn began to radiate throughout her arm, and she spied down to see that blood was running down her sleeve where one of the claws had grazed over her forearm. It stung worse than a regular cut, like acid was pouring from them and onto her milky skin.

"Energy," the beast hissed again, lunging at Usagi.

She rolled out of the way, her eyes widening in shock while the beast tried to pry its claws from the ground. Getting up, Usagi scurried through the park, down the winding sidewalks and past colorful playgrounds, her breathing speeding up and tears brimming in her eyes from the pain.

Coming to a clearing in a thick patch of forest, Usagi stopped to regain her breath. She held back her sobs as she pressed one limp arm to the wound on the other.

But the fear tipped over and spilt; she was alone.

Sinking to the ground, she tried her hardest to relax. But it felt as though every bone in her body was shaking along with her nerves.

Usagi fell back, spreading about the soft leaves as she tried desperately to regain her composure. The back of her throat felt scratchy and sore from screaming and crying, but the soothing moonlight shone into her skin like the sun did as she tried to tan at the beach.

But the moon was more comforting to her.

"Why are you out here so late?"

Usagi's eyes popped open and she quickly sat up, ready to evade any attacks sent her way. But it was not the monster; it was the man in the mask. Immediately, Usagi found herself crawling away on her elbows, but the man swooped down and lifted her up, ignoring her frightened cry. But instead of swooping her into his arms, he steadied her on the ground.

"Why are you out here so late?" he repeated, a bit more firmly.

She shook her head and looked away from him, trying to find any route of escape. Seeing none, she forced herself to meet his cold eyes.

"W-why are you here?" Usagi stuttered.

He cocked an eyebrow. "Despite what you may think, when one usually hears a scream, they go and see what caused it."

"But why _here?_ Why is it that you always show up whenever one of those monster things appears?"

"They're called _youma_," he said softly. "And what do you mean? Is there one here right now?"

Usagi nodded, holding up her arm. "And I don't suppose you wouldn't have anything to do with this, either?"

He looked at her in surprise. "You think that I'm the one who is causing all this? Usagi, you don't know how wr---"

"How did you know my name?" she demanded.

His eyes rolled skyward and she heard him curse himself a couple of times.

"That doesn't matter. What does matter is that you need to tell me where this youma is," he said.

Usagi found herself pointing beyond the horizon of the trees, where the ominous darkness shrouded the area in fear and danger.

"Stay here," he muttered, bounding into the forest, his velvety cape flowing wildly suavely behind him.

"Wait!" Usagi cried, jogging behind him.

He continued running, but looked back at her harshly.

"Just do as you're told for once!" he growled.

And as the billowing cape rose to the sky as the man in the mask took one giant leap into the trees, Usagi cursed all men in general and followed him.

* * *

Usagi peeked through the briars with awe struck eyes, her heart speeding up as she watched the masked man battle the clawed creature. It was brutal in a way, yet strangely majestic. The beast would try to take a swipe at the Masked Man, but he would always evade the attack before it caused any damage.

He had even pulled some kind of magical sword out of thin air, Usagi mused. The "youma's" vociferous cries were really starting to hurt her ears, but although it seemed that the beast was winning, it looked as though the man in the mask wasn't even trying.

His agility, his stamina, his punches….they all looked so weak. Like he was holding back and waiting for something. Waiting for what? She squinted to analyze his face, but it looked no different from the angry glare he had tossed her way when he had told her to do as she was told.

Her blood was bubbling in her body like molten lava. How dare he? He had looked at her as though she had been a child!

Grumbling, she stood up, balling her fists as she stepped out of the bush, waving her arms wildly around her head.

"Hey!" she cried. "Over here!"

The affect had been exactly what she wanted. They both turned to her with dumbfounded looks, the Masked Man's sword hanging in the air.

The creature's face, however, slowly curled into a menacing smirk, extending its claws and raising them in the air.

The Masked Man, however, did not look so amused. His face scorched into a scowl, but then melted into a glare.

But it was then that Usagi realized that she hadn't the faintest clue what she was doing. The look on the man's face was priceless, but as she saw the beast raise its claws, her throat seemed to swell shut.

"Energy!" It cried, lunging toward her.

Usagi shrieked and tried to run out of the way, but she felt her side get clipped as she was pushed to the ground, a loud clanging of metal on metal resounding above her head.

Looking up, the Masked Man had his sword against the beast's claws, preventing them from getting any closer to either of them.

It was like an arm wrestle, she thought, and she was glad that the masked man was winning. Had he been a second late, she would have…

Usagi winced and stared at her scraped hands, trying vainly to brush off any dirt.

She felt a violent shake on her shoulder, forcing her to look up.

"Run!" the Masked Man cried.

She remained where she was, her eyes widening in fear as the struggle continued.

"You idiot!" he roared. "Get into the bushes now! And don't _you dare leave until I've said that it's alright to do so_!"

She nodded shakily, darting back into the thicket of briars, ignoring the pain she was feeling from all the dagger sharp thorns cutting into her legs.

The battle seemed as though it lasted for hours, and Usagi was tempted to run out into the clearing again and see if the masked man was alright. But remembering his last words, Usagi reluctantly stayed put.

The sounds of the fight reverberated in her ears, the shrieks of the creature outmatching the grunts of the Masked Man's by far. She supposed that was a good thing, but Usagi was still worried.

At last, there was one last grunt, and a thud on the ground.

Peering over the bush, Usagi popped one eye open to see if the worst she had expected had come true.

But lying in the dirt was none other than the youma.

"Didn't I tell you to stay in the bushes," the Masked Man spat from behind her.

Usagi turned around and looked nervously into his eyes. "I-I'm sorry!" she cried. "I just wanted to see if you were okay."

He sighed and slapped a hand to his forehead. "And what if that wasn't me? You would have blown your cover completely to that youma and there would have been nobody around to hear you screaming!"

Usagi shivered and looked at her feet, frowning as she noticed that one of her sneakers was starting to fall apart. She was about to bend down and play with it until a warm weight was placed upon her shoulders. Looking up in curiosity, she saw that he had placed his cape around her, though his eyes still donned the same glare.

"It's okay," she said. "I'm not really cold."

"I know," he spoke, the low timbre of his voice causing Usagi to shudder.

But in less than a second, he had scooped her up into his arms and leapt into the air. She screamed at the top of her lungs, finding smugly that the man winced as they landed in one of the trees.

"What are you doing?" Usagi cried.

He gave her no reply, but they were suddenly lifted from the ground again as he jumped into the next tree, and Usagi clutched the collar of his shirt in fear as he continued to leap through the park.

But when they stopped landing on trees and on a much smoother and harder surface, Usagi looked down. He was jumping from the darn rooftops! She whimpered into his tuxedo jacket, and she noticed how he had seemed to slow down a bit after that, much to Usagi's relief.

But she had to admit that the scene was beautiful. When she had looked at the bustling streets of Tokyo before, she had been hit by inspiration and avid curiosity. But when she looked down from the view of a building, it was as if she had been struck by a bolt of lightning.

It was a tad exhilarating, too. The way they skimmed over the roofs, the people below ignorant as to what was going on above them.

But when they lurched to a sudden stop, Usagi felt her stomach lurch, and almost vomited from it. She hardly paid any attention to it though, for she realized that they had stopped at her house.

Struggling, she tried to disentangle herself from his arms and at least try and escape him now that she was so close to home plate, but his grips were like manacles, and as he hopped on the rim of her balcony, she felt the dread and terror rise within her like Dracula from his coffin.

Usagi felt a hand over her face, and then nothing.

* * *

"Usagi, honey, wake up," her mother said softly into her ear before leaving the room.

Usagi groaned and slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes as she rolled over the side of her bed. Stumbling, she made her way over to the floor length mirror on the pastel pink wall, expecting to see a disgusting laceration on her arm and side. But even when she lifted her pajama shirt, there wasn't even a tiny bruise. 'Weird,' she thought. Had that whole ordeal been a dream? The pain and the fear and emotion had been too real, and she had never had a dream before where she could recall the whole ordeal so easily like a memory.

Frowning, she sauntered down the stairs to see her mother doting on the cat, which seemed to look as though all its wounds had been cleaned up pretty well.

The cat's eyes fell on her, and its tail swished back and forth as the red eyes flickered over her.

Her mom quickly walked up to her and kissed her on the head, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Good morning," she whispered, setting a place at the table for breakfast.

Usagi held up one of her hands. "No mom, I'm fine. Not really hungry anyway."

Ikuko almost looked hurt, but her cheerful smile was back on her face in an instant.

"That cat's doing pretty well," she said, putting the plate back on the counter.

Usagi nodded, drumming her fingers on the countertop. "I'm glad. But can I go back to bed mom? I'm still really tired."

"You're lucky it's a Saturday," Ikuko muttered.

Usagi grinned and turned to walk back upstairs, before her mother called behind her. "And by the way, young lady, the next time you stay out you need to tell us when you come back home. Your father and I were so worried! But an hour later we found you sleeping in your room."

Usagi blanked for a second. "Uh, I fell asleep?"

Ikuko furrowed her brow. "Yes, honey. You fell asleep. And there was some weird cloak type thing hanging in your room. I have no idea what it is so I put it on your chair."

"Um, thanks mom," Usagi said quickly, walking back towards the stairs.

"Oh, and Usagi?"

She stopped and turned to see her mother looking at her worriedly. "Please be careful out there, okay?"

Usagi's eyes softened and she softly said back, "I will. Promise."

She hastened into her room, and sure enough, the cape was laying right over her chair in the corner. Shutting the door behind her, she switched on the light and turned back around. But the cape wasn't resting in the chair anymore.

Because sitting there was the Man in the Mask.

* * *

Oh, suspicious. I hope that satisfies you until Halloween is over. And by the way I  
forgot to mention that this story is a slight AU, if you haven't noticed already. ;)  
Please review, even criticism is good, for it is constructive and builds strong  
bones, just like milk. :) Until next time........


	4. Chapter 4

Another update. Not too late, I suppose. I would have had it out this  
weeked but I had to go to a wedding reception. And I am still fuming  
at the stuck up lady that threw my shoe down a staircase of the  
country club. What a jerk. But other than my random musings, I  
would like to thank all those who have reviewed, for I enjoy nothing  
more than reviews, so please do it. :) Also, I am working on a few  
other stories, so they might be out soon...or not, depending on how  
many reviews I get on this one. And, as always, I do not own Sailor  
Moon, her whereabouts are unknown, but the last I heard she and  
Tuxedo Kamen were last spotted in Jamaica on their honeymoon.  
Well, carry on, because I doubt that anybody even reads these  
stupid beginning notes, even though they have important info in  
them!

**enchanted legend: I hope this chapter answers your questions :)**

And finally, my new review pal/writer/person...thing ;),  
xGekkeiju:  
First off, thank you for the second or third review, my account  
wont let me check the review page, so I had to get all the  
infor from my email. My brother died in those pre-teen years of  
mixed confusion and angst so pay my rants no heed, but thank  
you. I'm going to start calling the security guard, "Hank." Don't  
ask, I just think it fits. I'm sorry that you don't understand...  
Hank's character, and I'm sorry for not making that realistic.  
And yes, I had to write that chapter in a bit of a rush so I  
apologize for all the grammatical errors in it, but I think I looked  
over this one a little better, but alert me if I'm wrong :)And thank  
you, for dialogue is probably my _only_ **strong point in writing, and  
thank you for the review. And the joke wasn't that bad, my old  
school on their broadcast used to have bad joke Tuesday....  
*represses shudder* I hope you had a great Halloween, and thank  
you for the review. Enjoy.  
**

On with the story now......

**

* * *

**

Never Walk it Off

Chapter 4

By sakanascales876

* * *

Usagi stood there, mouth agape as the Man in the Mask was perched in her chair, waiting expectantly for her to say something. She considered going back downstairs, but even though she was standing right next to the bedroom door, she doubted that she could even get it open before he was able to stop her.

He folded his hands beneath his chin, staring at her with his incisive eyes. "You sure seem to enjoy sleeping in, don't you?"

His voice was neither calm nor angry, but the deepness and severity caused Usagi to jump.

"W-what are you doing here?" she asked, her voice tiny and brittle compared to his.

He shrugged. "I don't know. Just wanted to see whether or not you had at least stuck around your home until morning."

Accusingly, he drew his brow into a glare. "You by far are the most ignorant imbecile I have ever met."

Usagi flinched, but nonetheless, she took a daring step forward. "And you are the most arrogant jerk I have ever met!"

He raised an eyebrow, staring at her for a moment before getting up, making his way over to the door. "Whatever your mother is cooking downstairs smells wonderful. I think I'll go----"

Usagi put her arms up and shoved at his chest, trying to stop him. It worked, but he hadn't even budged. "You can't! If my mom sees you she'll---"

He grasped her hands that were splayed across his chest, holding them firmly but gently before him. "Oh? Are you asking me to stay here? I seem to remember several instances in which you didn't listen to me. So why should it be any different. I think she's making pancakes…" he murmured before walking around her.

She grabbed on to his arm and desperately tried to pull him back. She was surprised when he nearly ricocheted back to her, knocking her back and onto her bed.

He loomed over her, blue on blue, one pair of blue scared and anxious, and the other cool and penetrating.

"Here, let's start with the first question before I proceed to lecture you into kingdom come. Why were you out so late last night?" he asked.

She sat up and glared at him. "Why do you care? I don't even know who you are!"

"Well, my name's Tuxedo Kamen, and I care because your life is not just your own anymore."

"Tuxedo Kamen? What on Earth are you talking about?" Usagi drew her brows together in confusion.

"You didn't answer my question. Quid pro quo. I'll answer your questions if you answer mine."

Usagi started picking at the end of her comforter, refusing to meet his eyes. "I was just out…that's all."

"Why?"

"Why do you care?"

He sighed and sat on the floor, rubbing a hand through his silky black hair. "Usagi, we could sit here for days and days just exchanging these sorts of meaningless questions. But I don't really have time for that, so just please answer."

Usagi didn't look at him, but merely looked at the wall right behind him. "I just needed to get away from here."

"Because…?" he prompted.

She shrugged. "Everyone's too sad and this house is too empty; I just couldn't take it anymore, so I left."

"What I said still stands: you're a very stupid girl."

She glared at him. "Shut up. You don't know what it's like to---"

Tuxedo Kamen put up a hand to silence her. "Don't even consider finishing that sentence, because I do know what you're going through right now, but you still shouldn't have gone out there so late. Heck, you shouldn't be going out at all with everything that's going on. I would have thought that you would have at least a little bit more common sense than that."

Usagi stood up and pointed at the door. "If you just came here to insult me then get out of here!"

"I'm not insulting you, but you need to be more aware of what's going on. When I tell you to do something _do it. _It's for your own safety," he said gravely, his eyes searching his.

"I don't have to do _anything_ you say!" she cried.

"You'd better if you want to survive another day," he warned.

She stopped and crossed her arms over her chest. "What was that thing? And why is it attacking people?"

"It was sent here."

"By who?" she asked.

He didn't say anything, but Usagi noticed that he looked like he was debating with himself. After awhile, he got up and began to walk away from her.

Turning, he said to her, "Listen, it doesn't really matter. I just came here to tell you to be more alert, because there may be a time when I'm not going to be around to help you anymore." He made his way over to the balcony doors. "Stay safe, Usagi."

Tuxedo Kamen opened the doors, but with a strength unknown to her, Usagi pushed them shut. "What is going on?" she demanded. "If you're saying that I'm somehow involved in this---"

"You are."

"Then I deserve to know what's happening."

He didn't look at her, but out the window into the drizzling rain.

"What do you want to know?" he asked.

"Everything."

"I can't tell you that yet," he said. "It's not the right time."

"When is the right time?"

"When you're ready."

Usagi glared up at him. "Then at least tell me who you're fighting against."

He sighed and shoved her gently into a chair, him lying down on the bed and staring up at the ceiling, his hands folded behind his head. "You must worship the color pink."

She didn't say anything, and neither did he. Usagi felt as though they were both trapped in a balloon that was being blown into, ready to burst if it received any more air. He opened his mouth, but then closed it with a sigh.

After around ten minutes, he finally decided to speak. "You realize….that these beasts aren't human, right?"

She nodded.

"These monsters," he paused for a moment. "They're here for only one purpose, and that is to destroy human kind."

Usagi opened her mouth, but he raised a hand to silence her. "Each monster is created with different abilities, like the one last night was ready to turn us both into human kabobs, and the one at the office building had enough power in its pinky finger to take out Tokyo Tower in a single explosion."

"They're sent here to gather energy, and don't ask me why, because I don't know yet. Perhaps they believe that before they kill us all, they should at least be able to get their money's worth."

"Who are these people…things?" Usagi asked in a whisper.

"From the information I've gathered, they are called the Dark Kingdom, and so far, the youma that have been sent our way are negligible to some of the beings they have up their sleeve. Someone has to be controlling them, because they're just too simple minded to be able to do all this by themselves."

"Why are you trying to stop them?"

He turned and looked at her. "Why? To save the Earth of course!"

"But you have…powers of some sort. How come you can't just stop them with those?" she asked.

"They have powers too. They have an army, and I'm just one person."

"Why do you fight then? It's not even your problem!" Anger bubbled within her, and Usagi didn't know why, but it felt good somehow, like it was going to make her feel better and take the ache away.

"It's my problem because it's my job to protect those on Earth in need of protection."

She didn't know why she said this, but a bitter part of herself possessed her to glare at him and say trenchantly, "Well you seemed to be doing a wonderful job at protecting my brother."

Hurt and shock registered in his normally aloof eyes, and Usagi immediately regretted what she said, but she didn't care; it felt too good for her to care.

Tuxedo Kamen sat in silence for what seemed like hours, his back facing her. The hatred swelled within her, crackling and spitting to find an opening to escape.

"I-I'm sorry," he almost seemed to croak. "I tried to stop the youma before it hurt anybody."

"But it did hurt somebody! And sorry won't bring him back," she spat, "and it won't bring back anybody else that died that day."

Tuxedo Kamen turned his head away from her. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm just one person." He sounded broken, like she had just picked him up and shattered him against the wall. She was appalled at herself for this, but it felt good, and that was all that mattered.

He stood up, his cape swishing as he edged toward her balcony doors.

"I'll be seeing you soon, Usagi-san," he muttered in a low voice, grasping the handle.

She didn't respond, but she hoped that her bored look would send him off for now; she had had enough.

"By the way," he said, pausing, his voice eerily frigid. "Watch out for that damn cat you've got downstairs. She's much more trouble than she's worth."

"I'm no more of a handful than you are, Tux-boy."

Usagi turned toward her door in horror, expecting to see her mother and father standing there with a baseball bat, ready to beat the living daylights out of Tuxedo Kamen and probably calling the police.

But no one was there.

"Down here," the feminine voice called.

She could see Tuxedo Kamen tense. "Usagi-san," he began, but then changed direction. "Luna, I don't think that it was wise of you to show up here just yet."

Usagi couldn't help it. Peeking nervously over the bed, she finally saw what had spoken. Curiosity killed the cat, she supposed, or the one that was sitting on the floor, staring expectantly up at her.

"You just---you…." She whispered incoherently.

"I just talked. Yes, I've already been through this, but if you faint like _he_ did," she said, motioning her head over to the man in black by her balcony, "then I will claw your face out so harshly that your great-great-great ancestors will still bear the scars. So, let's just get the formalities over with and begin, shall we?"

"Okay," she muttered, but heedless to the warning, the churning in her head and stomach was too great, for she hit the carpet anyway.

* * *

"I hate it when this happens," a nagging female voice commented. "It wastes time, but it was fun when it happened to you though."

Usagi could practically taste the frown on the other person's face. "I can't say that I agree with you, you crazy old cat. Because of you, I wasn't able to sleep for days." Male voice, definitely male, she noted.

"I was only kidding when I said that I was going to give you rabies."

"I'm still convinced that it wasn't whipped cream," he countered.

Usagi groaned and reached up to gently touch her head. It didn't hurt, but her brain did.

"Mom? Dad?" she asked, popping open two bleary eyes.

She heard a sigh, and then a shuffle towards where she assumed her door was, like someone was pushing something across her carpet.

"I think you'd better handle this, Tux-boy," the female voice said.

Footsteps approached her, and soon there was a strong arm wrapped securely around her back, guiding her gently over to her bed. Usagi welcomed the warmth of her pillows, snuggling deep into the mattress as she tried desperately to ignore the voiced that surrounded her.

"Don't get too comfortable," Tuxedo Kamen whispered, the same low tone that had haunted her dreams for the past months resurfacing. "She's relentless, but at least I'll be here for you."

Usagi couldn't figure out what that meant as she heard him walk away from her. She tried opening her eyes again, and this time her vision was clear, though she felt heavy and warm, too warm for her liking.

The cat sat at the end of her bed, watching her with what seemed like utter amusement. All the bandages that her mother had applied were gone, and so were the scratches that had come along with them. She just sat like that for almost a minute, staring at the fur ball. Its tail swished back and forth, and the acute res eyes glinted like rubies as they frolicked between hers.

"My name is----"

"Don't," Usagi said, putting up one hand. "I have had enough. First that freak," she said, pointing over to a very imperturbable Tuxedo Kamen. "And now you. Get out, and just leave me to convince myself that my sanity is still fully intact and that this is just a dream before I scream and my dad and brother come in here with the shotguns."

"Tux-boy took care of that already," she said, nodding over to where her dresser was now innocently blocking the bedroom door.

Usagi just stared back at her, trying her best not to start screaming.

"What do you want?" she whispered, averting her eyes to her bedspread, glancing at the bunnies that she must have memorized a billion times when she had been sent to her room

But the next thing Usagi knew, Luna had jumped into the air, doing a little flip and landing on the bed with a perfect dismount, but she wasn't the only thing that landed.

The cat inched toward her, extending a paw. "I believe we have yet to introduce ourselves," she said politely.

Sitting on the middle of her bed was what looked like a tiny compact that could fit into the palm of her hand. It was pure gold, adorned silver, with sprinkled blue, peppered green, a dash of red, a drop of orange, and a little bit of pink all dabbled on it. And what really caught her attention was the giant crescent moon that gleamed innocently from the center, making it every woman's dream of jewelry.

Usagi dumbly shuck the cat's paw, blinking as the cat's mouth formed a smile.

"My name is Luna," she said, taking a few steps back to where the compact was. "And I want you to have _this_."

* * *

Well, there's another chapter done. I'll have another one out during Thanksgiving break though.  
I can't wait until then, for there will finally be a time to breathe after this hectic year! By the  
way, please review, it makes my day better and I love hearing from you guys, and it prompts  
me to write more, so please review. And criticism is good, for it is constructive and builds strong  
bones, just like milk. And I need strong bones so that I can push that mean lady down a flight  
of stairs after she threw my shoe down them. :)

Until next time.......


	5. Chapter 5

Well, here's another chapter, actually, the last kind of short  
chapter there's going to be. The layout for the rest of the  
story is going to be much different and longer, for this was  
actually some kind of giant...prologue I guess you could call  
it. Thank you to the the reviewers of this story fo far, for you  
are the real reason I keep writing. By the way, don't own  
the Sailor of the Moon.

**And by the way, if I don't get many reviews for this chapter,  
the next one, which is supposed to really start the main  
story off won't come out until Christmas, of next year.**

:) Enjoy

* * *

Never Walk it Off

Chapter 5

By sakanascales876

* * *

Usagi stared at the little pink compact in befuddlement. "You're giving me face powder?"

The cat rolled her eyes and sighed, sending a shiver down Usagi's spine. "Of course not, child! You need to stop being so naïve." She turned to her, and with burning eyes that would set fire to the sun, she spoke in a deadly calm voice, "Pick it up."

Tuxedo Kamen moved to intervene. "Don't do it, Usagi. Luna, this isn't the right time; she's not ready."

"Neither were you. Don't interfere."

He looked at her warningly, but nonetheless, Usagi reached for it, and as her hand touched the compact, her destiny had just begun.

* * *

"How the heck am I supposed to do this, again?" Usagi cried as she ran through the rows in the cemetery, her legs knocking against the haphazardly placed head stones. Being in heels didn't exactly help the situation either.

"Just stay down!" Tuxedo Kamen roared, shooting a wave of energy from his hand and disabling the youma, which was now shooting water from its arms with enough force to knock a building down.

Usagi leaped behind a particularly tall grave marker and clutched the side of it harshly, not daring to turn around. Her breathing was quickened, and her pigtails were flying all around her face due to the harsh winds that had just picked up.

"Sailor Moon! What are you doing?"

Usagi jumped, turning quickly over to Luna whom was glaring at her. "He told me to stay down!" Usagi whispered furiously.

"Well I'm telling you to stand up!" the cat hissed.

Usagi peeked over the top of the tomb stone, her nails clawing into the rock as she rolled her head back and forth, looking for any sign of the monster. To her bewilderment, it wasn't there, and neither was Tuxedo Kamen.

Gradually, she stood up, wincing as her knees cracked when her legs unraveled. It was as silent as a grave yard, with only Luna remaining behind her.

Usagi squealed as something grabbed her from behind. For a moment, she relaxed into the arms, relieved that Tuxedo Kamen had finally come. But when the arms tightened around her waist, with a dagger extended to her throat, Usagi really lived up to her name, squirming and scratching any place she could reach.

"Scream and you die," the youma whispered into her ear. It reeked of rotting flesh, and Usagi felt what seemed like blood begin to drip down her arms where the youma was grasping her, claws sinking into her skin.

"Where's Tuxedo Kamen?" she whimpered.

"Tux-boy?" She felt it grin while it breathed slowly down her neck.

Usagi felt herself nod shakily and purse her lips as she tried to lean away.

"Dead," it said. "And you're next."

"Please," Usagi whispered. "What do you want?"

It barked out a laugh, sending a tremor down Usagi's arms as the sound pierced her mind and heart. She felt one of the clawed hands slowly withdraw from her arm, and she veiled her wince as the wind began to thrash against the bleeding holes along the pale skin. She dared not to move though, for the icy dagger in front of her neck actually made her lean back into the youma.

"To see all of you disgusting humans die."

She could practically hear the clawed hand whip through the air, but the pain never came. Instead, the youma was thrown off of her, and she was sent tumbling to the ground.

Looking up, Usagi saw a tall woman with glistening black hair claw at the youma with nails that were as long as pocket knives. The youma screamed, and Usagi was finally able to get a good look at it. It looked like a human popsicle, with gnarled hands, blue skin and rotting flesh. Its features were smooth though, just like ice. Its short hair looked like icicles hanging off of a tree, and so did its teeth.

Usagi stared in awe as the woman threw the youma over at least four rows of graves, smashing into the fifth row and completely taking it out. The woman stood up, her cinnamon eyes resting on Usagi.

"Heaven's child! Didn't I tell you to get up and fight?" she cried, dashing over to where Usagi lay on the ground.

"Luna?" she said dumbly as the woman grabbed beneath her arms and hoisted her up.

"Yes, it's me!" Luna shouted, grasping Usagi's chin and pulling her face to face. "I need you to listen carefully."

She turned around to see the youma slowly rising, it's icy teeth curled into a growl as it slowly made its way over to them.

"The tiara on your forehead," Luna said. "I need you to take it off and throw it at the youma. Scream, 'Moon Tiara Action.'"

Usagi panicked. "What tiara? Luna, it's getting closer!"

The youma extended one arm and hurled a tidal wave straight at them. Usagi and Luna were thrown backwards into another row of grave markers, Luna shifting back into a cat as she hit the stone. The youma crouched and put its hand into the ground, a blue glow covering the entire expanse of the cemetery. When it reached Usagi, blue ice began to form around her feet, gradually creeping to her ankles and above.

"Luna!" she screamed, looking frantically over to the motionless body of the cat whose tail was now beginning to freeze.

She didn't respond, and Usagi found that the more she struggled, the quicker the ice grew. She reached back and curled a gloved fist around the tomb stone she sat in front of, furiously trying to tug away.

"_Sailor Moon,"_ a voice whispered into her ear.

Usagi whipped her head every which way, tears springing to her eyes as she saw that nobody was around.

"_Throw the tiara, Sailor Moon,"_ the voice whispered again. _"The one on your forehead."_

Usagi's hand shot up to her forehead, feeling the golden band that rested there practically burn through her glove. She wrenched it off, holding it up in front of her face to get a better look at it. It seemed like it was just a golden band with a tiny pink jewel resting within it. This was not a tiara, her mind whispered. A tiara was what a princess wore, with many jewels and intricate designs.

"This thing?" she muttered.

"_Yes,"_ the soothing voice said. _"Throw it. You are the only one that can change the fate of this planet now, Sailor Moon."_

The presence seemed to disappear, for it seemed like all the warmth had been sucked out of the air. Usagi clutched the tiara and raised it into the air with one trembling hand. She aimed for the youma, which was now only two rows away and shouted,

"Moon Tiara Action!" It whirled out of her hand and flew straight at the youma.

It looked as though someone had just dropped a bomb where the youma stood, for it almost burst into flames as the tiara cut it straight in two, turning it into nothing more than a pile of ashes.

The tiara flew straight back into her hand, losing its glow and returning to the normal golden sheen it was. Usagi placed it slowly back onto her head as the ice around her ankles shattered into a million tiny pieces before turning into dust, just as the youma had.

She looked over to Luna, who was easily regaining her balance.

"Are you okay?" Usagi asked quietly.

Luna nodded and just stared at her, sending chills down her spine. This cat frightened her, and there was something definitely wrong with her.

"I think the real question is, are _you_ alright Sailor Moon?"

"My name is Usagi."

Luna shook her head. "On the battlefield, you will be known as Sailor Moon. Never say your name aloud. Your identities are to remain a secret."

At the word, "identities," Usagi immediately hopped up.

"Where's Tuxedo Kamen?" she asked nervously, scanning the cemetery for any sign of him.

A human Luna grasped her arm and guided it to the ground. Usagi looked at her in bewilderment as Luna closed her eyes as though she were praying. After a couple of minutes, she pointed to her right, where a giant willow tree towered over the church.

"There," she muttered.

They both took off, sprinting against the wind that was tangling with their faces. Usagi noted that although Luna looked around ten years older than her, she was far faster than Usagi.

Luna reached him first, crouching down next to his immobile body which was hunched over the trunk of the tree. As Usagi slowed to a stop, Luna had already flipped him over and was dabbing a white handkerchief against a slowly bleeding gash on his side.

"Is he going to be okay?" Usagi questioned. "How did this happen?"

Luna didn't even glance at her. "I'm guessing that he got hit in the side and was knocked into this tree and hit his head. He'll be fine once he wakes up."

Usagi said nothing, but remained a few feet away from them, feeling useless as Luna cleaned the blood.

"Luna," Usagi said slowly. "How did I do that?"

"Do what?"

She bit her lip. "I killed that-that thing."

Luna smiled. "You have incredible power, Usagi-chan. You're like him, now," she motioned to Tuxedo Kamen. "You are a warrior, and it is now your job to protect the people of the world now."

Usagi frantically shook her head. "No. I am the _last_ person you would want to be in charge of something like this, so you're going to have to pick somebody else."

"_You_ _are_ Sailor Moon, and nothing you can do will change it."

"But I don't want to be….Sailor Moon!"

"You don't have a choice," Luna said firmly, standing up. "Now help me get him home, Usagi."

She bent down and attempted to lift him up, supporting his back while slinging one of his arms around her shoulders. Usagi just gawked at her, unsure of what to do.

"_Go with her,"_ the familiar voice whispered to her. _"She's your safest option…for now."_

Usagi turned around, looking for anybody else that could be there. And standing right by the grave marker that she had been trapped at moments ago was a girl with golden hair, almost as long as her own, except it was down and there was a single red bow in the center of it. She was dressed in an outfit similar to Usagi's, except hers was yellow and orange. Her eyes were a cool shade of blue, and although they were staring at her seriously, a warm smile was drawn upon her lips.

"Sailor Moon…A little help here," Luna struggled as she trudged down the rows of grave stones with a giant blob of black on her back.

Usagi lingered, but nonetheless, turned and ran, grabbing Tuxedo Kamen's other arm and putting it around her shoulder, but not before she heard the girl whisper one more thing.

"_By the way, watch out for that damn cat; she's more trouble than she's worth."_

Usagi looked around Tuxedo Kamen at Luna, but then shook the though and continued walking.

* * *

The moment Usagi and Luna opened the apartment door, they both shrugged an awakening Tuxedo Kamen's arms off of their shoulders, letting him fall back onto the couch.

He sighed, glaring at both of the panting women. "Thanks a ton," he said sarcastically.

"You're—welcome," Usagi wheezed. She turned to Luna.

"How do I change back to normal?"

"Just close your eyes and _feel_ it. Tell yourself that you want to go back to being normal Usagi again, and you will."

Usagi closed her eyes, instead wishing that all of this was some kind of sick joke and that she could just crawl in bed until she was eighteen. She felt a warm heat at the center of her chest, and the golden brooch in the middle exploded, soft pink ribbons fluttering around her body.

And then, normal Usagi was standing there in her pink bunny pajama pants and purple tank top, just as she had been before, except the compact from before was resting in her hand.

With a sigh, she fell back onto the black leather couch, next to Tuxedo Kamen, closing her eyes and curling into his side.

"Having fun?" he murmured, staring down at the golden head that was resting on his shoulder.

"I'm tired," she moaned.

"What do you want me to do about it?"

She mumbled incoherently, and neither of them said anything after that for a few moments. Usagi reveled in the feeling of his shoulder, how strong it was yet so soft…

"Usagi?" Tuxedo Kamen asked.

"Hmm?"

"Not that this isn't comfortable," he said slowly, "But you're elbow is in my side, you know, the one with the huge cut."

She jumped back from him, shouting a million apologies while covering her hand over her mouth, making them sound muffled and nasally.

He held up a hand to silence her, but then lowered it to the gash in his side. A white light glowed from his fingertips, and when he lifted it away, both the blood and the cut were gone.

"How did you do that?" Usagi asked in awe.

"I'm psychometric," he said. At Usagi's look of utter befuddlement, he continued, "I can heal."

"Oh."

They didn't say anything, but they both just stared at each other, Tuxedo Kamen watching her every movement, and Usagi wondering why the heck he was staring at her.

Luna was the one that finally broke the silence.

"Mamoru, can you make a bed for me on your couch?" Luna asked, leaning against the wall.

Usagi frowned. Mamoru? Why did that name sound familiar?

"No, there is no way that you're staying here!" Tuxedo Kamen spat. "I already had to put up with you!"

Usagi nearly jumped at his sudden change of mood, wondering why on earth he was yelling at Luna. She seemed nice enough, though a little bossy.

Luna raised a slim eyebrow. "I didn't know that you were so opposed to my company."

"I'm not!" he said. "But I am done living under your messed up rules. You analyze everything that I do!"

"That's because it's my job!" Luna cried. "I am both your guardians!"

Tuxedo Kamen held a hand up. "You're not living here again."

There was a coldness to his voice that would have made any other person quiver, but Luna held her ground.

"Fine, you ungrateful little boy! I'll go live with the girl. She needs the training anyway!"

"Oh no. You're not going to ruin her life either. The last thing that any of us needs right now is you nosing into our lives."

Mamoru paused for a minute. "I told you that it was too early to bring her into this. She's only fourteen. At least give her some time to grow up like a normal kid like I did." He seemed to stop. "Well almost normal."

Luna nearly growled. "The world is not going to wait for her to grow up! We need both of you to go out there and fight! Mamoru, you're just not enough anymore!"

Mamoru shook his head. "I guess you're right, Luna. I'm just not enough."

Usagi thought that his voice sounded almost…hurt, but she didn't say anything. Luna must have sensed this too, for she immediately tried to mend her words.

"You know that that's not what I meant."

He nodded. "I know."

He stopped and reached up, gently taking the white mask off, his hair falling into his eyes. He ducked his head, and the Tuxedo vanished in a second, leaving him wearing an olive green jacket and black pants. He slowly glanced up at Usagi with a sad twinge in his eyes, and he looked at her apologetically.

Usagi recognized him at once; the blue eyes were unmistakable.

"You're Motoki-san's friend!" she exclaimed. "I can't believe it…."

He nodded slowly. "My name's Chiba Mamoru."

Usagi paused, completely at a loss of words. "Why didn't you tell me that it was you?"

"I didn't want you to get dragged in all of this."

"All of what?"

"This fighting. You're too young to be fighting like this."

Usagi frowned. "You don't look all that older than I do."

He looked away, back to where Luna was standing against the wall.

"This is truly a mistake, Luna. Are you sure that there isn't some kind of way to modify her memory and send her home?"

Luna shook her head. "Even if I could, I wouldn't. This city needs the _both_ of you now, and Usagi's going to have to just deal with it.

Mamoru sighed, resting his head against the back of the couch. "Sorry Usagi; I really tried to help."

She tilted her head in confusion. "Help with what?"

And for one of the very few times in the past fourteen years, Mamoru smiled.

* * *

This chapter was...eh, but the next one is the one where you finally get  
clued in to what the heck is going on. I know, that's rare for me isn't it?  
And plus, the rest of the chapters are going to be much longer, so I hope  
you'll be happy about that. Well, please review. And criticism is good and  
constructive. Builds them strong bones, too, just like milk.  
Until next time....


	6. Chapter 6

Here's the next chapter, or basically the bginning of the real plot. The rest of the story is going to be laid out like this, with longer chapters. I hope that makes you happy. By the way, I don't own Sailor Moon, any of the characters, nor am I holding any of them hostage for ransom. I wouldn't get any money anyway.

This chapter takes place a year into the future since Usagi's first battle, as the rest of the story is. Usagi is now fifteen, and Mamoru is twenty. Yeesh, I know. Anime ages.

I am very disappointed. I got over 750 hits to this story alone this month, and the only two chapters I have published have earned a grand total of ten or evelven reviews. Thank you to the nice people who reviewed. And since Christmas break is coming up, if I don't get more reviews, I'm not going to put the next chapter out until the break.

Review and enjoy.

**By the way, Rui is actually Naru's childhood friend from the tennis episode where Nephrite curses the tennis racket and  
Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen are nearly flambeed. So Don't go yelling at me for making up more characters.**

* * *

Never Walk it Off

Chapter 6

By sakanscales876

**~One Year Later~**

Usagi sat, furiously twisting the Street Fighter joystick back and forth, her tiny wrestling girl landing punches at every single buff man in her path.

"Motoki-san, can I get another milkshake?" she called to the man behind the counter.

"Sure thing Usa." He waved, abandoning his seat beside her.

"Odango," a voice from behind her groaned. "Please. You've been here for two hours doing nothing but wasting your allowance. Can we please go train now?"

Usagi furrowed her brow as one of the fighters slugged her wrestler in the gut. "We'll leave in one second, Mamoru-baka…and I told you not to call me that."

He ignored her. "You said that we'd leave three milkshakes and a half ago Odango Atama. Luna's going to get on my case if we don't train soon."

"You always over exaggerate about her. She's not that bad."

Mamoru sighed. "Then she must obviously like you, because she hates me."

"She does not!" Usagi said reproachfully.

"I don't really care at this point," he mumbled. "But she said that as long as I help you train, that she'll stay at your house."

* * *

Mamoru swung his fist at the side of Usagi's head, but she ducked at the last second, elbowing him in the stomach. He grunted, but not before hooking the bridge of his foot around her ankle, pulling her to the floor. Usagi gasped as she hit the ground, rolling as Mamoru sent another fist at her face. She heard him curse as it went through the ground, desperately trying to pull it out.

Usagi, still lying on her side, brought her knee up and landed it straight at his chest, making him fall limply to the ground. This was not a good idea, Usagi noted, as Mamoru pinned her to the ground, arms above her head. She couldn't shake his grip, and Usagi blamed his well toned arms for this.

"Give up?" Mamoru taunted.

"Oh, go throw a rose Tux-boy!" Usagi spat, flinging up her knee and hitting him…_there_.

Mamoru inhaled sharply, and for a moment, Usagi thought that she had killed him. He moaned, rolling off of her, his back facing her with his eyes shut firmly. Though triumphant, Usagi couldn't help but feel a little bad as he curled up into a ball, as most men did when hit _there._

But, the deed was done she swayed, so she found herself sauntering over to her water bottle, calling, "Sorry!" over her back.

She took a long swig of water, mentally relaxing as the cool liquid slid down her throat. But it was knocked to the ground when someone smacked her arm, making it spill all over the bottom of her sweat pants.

Mamoru stood there, looking madder than hell. Usagi glared back at him, and crossing her arms over her chest, she turned around and stormed away, sitting down with her back turned to him and towards the shady greens in the forest.

Mamoru raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What's wrong with you?" he yelled.

"Go away!" Usagi cried.

Mamoru stalked over to her. "What's got you so worked up?"

She turned away from him, and Mamoru sighed. "What did I do?"

And suddenly, she was in his face. "You are such a jerk Chiba Mamoru!"

Mamoru took a step back, frowning at her. "What did I do?"

"You smacked me!" she yelled.

Mamoru sighed. "Jeez Odango. I'll share my water with you…happy?"

"That's not what I'm talking about!"

"Then what the hell are you talking about?"

She looked at her feet, her arms still crossed over her chest. "You hit me…there," she whispered.

"I hit you where?" Mamoru scratched his head.

She stopped, sighing before shouting, "You hit my boob!"

He blinked. "Your what?"

She blushed, refusing to meet his eyes. "You heard me; don't make me say it again!"

"I never touched your boob!" he defended, running a hand through his hair.

"Yes you did! When you smacked the water bottle out of my hand you hit me!"

He sighed. "Odango, you know that I wasn't trying to do anything…"

"I know that!" she cried crossly, before lowering her voice. "But it hurts…"

"What?" he asked.

"It hurts!" she yelled.

Mamoru stared at her in confusion. "Why would smacking your…hitting you _there_ hurt?"

Usagi looked affronted. "Well how should I know? They're just made that way!"

"I'm sorry!" Mamoru shouted. "But you didn't seem too concerned when _you_ kicked _me_!"

"That's different!" she spat.

"How so?"

"Ugh!" Usagi cried. "You just don't get it. Being smacked in the boob for a girl hurts just as bad!"

"Well excuse me!" Mamoru yelled sarcastically. "But I don't think that a _youma _is really going to care whether or not it hurts you when it smacks you on the boob!"

"Oh yes they will! They'd never hit me there, you jerk!"

"Usagi, they'd tear your arms and legs off and use them as their hopscotch markers, but you honestly don't believe that they'd smack you _there_?"

"They probably know what it feels like since half of the youma we've faced are girls!" Usagi screamed.

Mamoru winced and covered his ears. He took in a deep breath, praying for patience and counting slowly back from ten, trying desperately to ignore the mass of pure sugar and anger that was directed straight at him.

"Odango Atama," he said, slowly sitting next to her. "I am _sorry_."

Usagi looked up at him hopefully.

"…That you are blowing this way out of proportion, but in case you haven't noticed, we have youma to fight, and believe me when I say that they're not going to care that you're offended when they try to kill you."

And the hope fell off her face onto the ground, crumbled in the earth, and dropped straight into hell where it writhed and burned in agony while being burned by trillions of tiny flames.

"Jerk!" Usagi cried, lunging for him.

She leapt on top of him, sending them both to the ground. She tried to wrap her arms around his neck, but he just kicked her off, pinning her to the ground and sticking her arms above her head.

He chuckled mockingly. "Nice try little girl, but you're too much of a toothpick to be able to hurt me."

"Really?" she scoffed. "Shall we have a repeat performance of around five minutes ago when I had you decapacitated on the ground?"

He growled. "Odango, I---"

"Am I interrupting something?"

Both of them jumped away as if they had been caught kissing on daddy's doorstep.

Luna cocked an eyebrow, a difficult feat for a cat. "Should I be concerned?"

"Um, no," Mamoru said, scratching the back of his head. "We were just…training."

Luna scoffed. "Obviously."

He frowned. "Luna, do you have a reason for being here?"

"News. Big news."

"What is it?"

Luna struggled for a moment. "The Shitennou are on the move."

Usagi and Mamoru didn't move.

"And when I say the Shitennou, I mean _all_ five of the Shitennou."

Luna shifted into her human form, leaning against the base of a tree in the small clearing they were in. The light shuffled through the trees, making her canary yellow dress and long black hair glisten. Usagi inferred that Luna had stolen her hair style from the beginning, for the two balls resting atop her head, or as Mamoru liked to call them, "Odango," was the same style that Usagi wore herself, except in pigtails.

"From the information that I've gathered from the Control Center," she began. "All of the recent youma attacks have been at large, public places, but you know that already."

"How does any of this have to do with the Shitennou?" Usagi asked.

Mamoru frowned down upon her. "Do you actually listen to me when I speak, or is your head really filled with odangos as I have theorized?"

She glared at him, opening her mouth to protest when he cut her off.

"As I've reminded you _hundreds_ of times, the Shitennou control the youma," and just to irk her more, he spoke to her as if she were a toddler learning about stranger danger, "And youma are _bad_."

Usagi furiously elbowed Mamoru in the ribs, and scampered behind Luna as he chased after her. Luna put her arms out, one pushing Usagi back and the other pushing Mamoru.

"Will both of you cut it out!" Luna scolded. "I swear, if you spent as much time training as you did bickering, we would have two Incredible Hulks running around the streets of Tokyo."

They both stopped, Mamoru huffing angrily, and Usagi looking mildly impressed.

"Where'd you learn that?" Usagi asked.

"When I stayed at Mamoru-san's house, sometimes I would go through his movies…"

"Yeah, along with eating all my food and nagging me into next week!" Mamoru cried. "Will you just tell us the news so you can leave already?"

Luna sighed and reached into her sub-space pocket, pulling out a map.

"This is a map of Tokyo," Luna said, holding the paper up to the light.

Mamoru rolled his eyes. "Well gee; I think that even the Odango could have figured that one out Luna."

"Hey!" Usagi cried indignantly, glaring up at him.

Luna held out her arms. "Enough! We don't have time for this!"

Usagi nearly growled, tearing her eyes from his and looking menacingly down at the paper.

"Thank you," Luna muttered. "Now, as Mamoru-san so _politely_ pointed out, this is a map of Tokyo. And on this map, the computer at Central Control has coordinated every single point of where a youma has attacked since this all began three years ago."

Usagi stared down at the paper in confusion. "I don't see anything."

"Patience," Luna said, lifting up one of her hands. It began to glow, a golden sheen that hurt both of their eyes to look at. She slowly placed it beneath the map, and the paper turned translucent, almost like the papers you placed beneath an overhead projector.

Hundreds and hundreds of tiny red dots were drawn on the paper, making the map almost seem like an entire haze of red. But that wasn't what caught both of their attention.

It was the fact that on the map, all the little dots created the perfect drawing of a five pronged star.

"We've been stupid," Luna uttered. "Unfortunately, we've failed to notice that all along they've been attacking in a pattern."

"What should we do?" Mamoru mumbled, frowning at the map.

"We're going to have to begin predicting when and where they're going to strike next." Luna looked at them.

"But that's not even the worst part." She pointed to a circular splay of dots near the center of the star, near all the major businesses and corporations of Tokyo, where people flocked to like geese.

"The pattern's ending."

She pointed to the center, where two rings hung, a few dots penned there, leaving a tiny bit of space in the center.

"Look at these ones," she said. "All the rings near the center are in rings. The tenth ring has ten buildings pinned there, all of them attacked in the perfect pattern of a circle. Same with the ninth and so forth."

She traced her finger closer to the center. "This one's the seventh, with seven buildings attacked, all together in a symmetrical ring around the middle. And here's the most recent, the sixth ring. All six buildings have been marked and attacked. You fought at this one just a week ago." She pointed to a dot, looking at both of them to see if they comprehended.

"But now look. The next ring they're going to be working on is the fifth, so we're going to need to point out all the possible locations that might become possible youma targets."

Mamoru ran a hand through his hair. "Do we know when their next attack is going to be?"

Luna shook her head. "No, but this is serious. Look at this pattern; it's on its fifth ring. We're starting to run out of time. If we can't stop them and they get down rings three and two, then something terrible is going to happen at one; I know it."

Mamoru scanned the map, his cobalt blue eyes acute with concentration. "Luna, I can tell you one thing for sure. Look at this," he said, pointing to the absolute center of the paper. "This is going to be the last building they attack."

Luna held the map up closely. "Tokyo Tower?"

He nodded. "It makes sense, I mean, it's probably one of the most crowded places in Tokyo."

"But why? We've stopped every single youma that they've sent our way? Whatever this pattern's supposed to do, how could it still work when every single beast that they've sent down here has been defeated?" Usagi asked, frowning up at Luna.

"I don't know child," she muttered, rolling up the map. "Training's dismissed today. I want both of you to report to Control Center after school tomorrow; we've got a lot to discuss."

Usagi and Mamoru nodded, grabbing their water bottles, one empty, Usagi reminded Mamoru, and left.

* * *

"I just don't get it," Usagi sighed. She put her arms up and stretched like Luna did often when in cat form.

"You don't get a lot of things."

She reached out and smacked Mamoru on the shoulder as they walked home. The sun was evaporating beneath the skyscrapers, leaving only an orange glow to light the sidewalk as they went.

"Not that!" she cried. "I meant the enemy! Why would they attack in a pattern?"

Mamoru shrugged. "Beats me. The Shitennou have always been a little twisted like that."

"Why do you and Luna always talk about them? I've never seen them."

"The Shitennou are our main enemies right now." He sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "I know all five of their names, but I've only ever seen two of them."

"Who are they?"

"Well, first there's Kunzite. I don't really know a lot about him, only that he's kind of the leader of their little cult or whatever the hell it is that they run." Mamoru stretched his arms out and crossed them behind his head. "The other four seem to work off of his orders, so I've been trying to track him down for a while."

"Next one is Nephrite. He's a big, tall, beefy man. Long brown hair, and is probably a couple inches taller than me. I had to fight him around…two years ago, but after that, I haven't seen him since. And there are two others, Jadeite and Quartzite. I haven't really had the displeasure to meet them, but they're probably as bad as the other three."

"And last, there's Zoicite. I really hate his guts. He's got sandy hair, kind of like Motoki's."

She paused, staring up at him with wide eyes.

"Don't look at me like that, he has green eyes and his hair is long enough to wear in a ponytail. Definitely not Zoicite."

She let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding in, thankful that she didn't have to fight one of her best friends.

Mamoru began to lift his shirt, making Usagi squeak and back away.

"What on earth are you doing?" she cried, trying to avert her eyes.

He pointed to a long scar on the side of his back that seemed to stretch all the way to the front.

"He did this to me just before I found you. He was leaving when he decided to give me a little…farewell present. Watch out for Zoicite. He shoots dagger-sharp poisonous crystals from his hands."

Usagi nodded, a slight blush appearing in her cheeks. "Okay."

He let his shirt fall, and a sense of relief swooped upon Usagi.

"But in a sense, and I can't believe I'm saying this Odango, but you're right. There has to be some reason that they'd keep on attacking in this pattern, because if we've beaten them at almost every location, they wouldn't it become ineffective?"

She nodded. "I'm starting to get a little scared here, Mamoru-baka. I mean, what if we run out of time? Before, I really dreaded that there might be a youma battle at night, but now, I'm _terrified_." She looked up at him. "What if we can't stop them and run out of time? What's going to happen?"

Mamoru shook his head, staring at the sidewalk ahead of him in concentration. "I really don't know, Odango. And I'm not looking forward to it, either."

He groaned, slapping a hand to his forehead.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I have a chemistry class tomorrow morning!" he complained. "I haven't been getting sleep for five days now!"

Usagi rolled her eyes. "Well, since there hasn't been a youma attack in a week, then that's really your own fault. And besides, I've got to go to school tomorrow…there's a math test."

"Who cares?" Mamoru said. "We both know that you didn't, nor do you plan on studying Odango."

"Jerk!" she cried, spewing insults at him.

He tuned her out, trudging grumpily away. How dare she? _She_ didn't get plagued by terrible dreams every night telling her to go out and find some damn crystal and do God-knows-what with it. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He really _was_ tired, and the constant battles, school work, bickering and strange dreams were really starting to do a number on him.

"Hello? Mamoru-baka!" Usagi waved frantically in front of his face.

He stopped, staring down at her in befuddlement.

"Why are you following me?"

"Following you? We're at my house."

Mamoru stopped and looked up, and sure enough, there was Kenji, peeking out the front curtain with promises of death presented in his eyes.

"Oh, erm, yeah. See you tomorrow Odango."

He turned to walk away, when Usagi reached out and grasped his arm. She looked at him worriedly, though she struggled to keep the expression on her face.

"Listen Mamoru-baka. I know that I am the very _last_ person on this Earth that you would trust with medical advice, but…just go home and sleep; you're not exactly acting like yourself."

Mamoru gulped, and after a few moments of staring blankly at her face, he wrenched his arm away and muttered a small, "Thanks."

"By the way," she called to him as he walked away. "I think that tomorrow we should go to the site of our last battle and see if there's anything there that would…stick out!"

It hardly registered in his mind that she had actually had a good idea. The only thing that registered was home, sleeping pill, and bed.

"Sure thing! See you Odango!"

He disappeared from site, and Usagi hesitantly walked inside her house, only to be greeted by a furious Kenji.

His face was red and his teeth were barred. "Why can't you bring home friends that aren't boys?"

He stormed out of the room, up the stairs, and slammed his bedroom door, drawing a small giggle out of Ikuko.

Usagi sighed and lay on the couch, turning on the T.V. and flipping through the channels.

She let out a deep breath, biting her bottom lip and shaking her head.

"Oh daddy."

* * *

Usagi sat in the fluffy purple bean bag chair in her room, shuffling dispassionately through the pages of the manga she must have read at least forty times. Her fluffy bunny pajamas curled over the edge of her toes, the pants being at least six inches too long for her. But that is the price of being so short, she groaned in her head.

But her feet were starting to really get cold, so Usagi got up and traipsed over to her dresser, quietly rummaging through it for her fuzzy blue socks that were at least an inch thick and ran easily to the top of her calves. She sighed in satisfaction as she pulled them out, sliding the drawer shut as she turned around to slip them on her feet.

She was met with a penetrating stare.

Had Usagi not been Sailor Moon, she probably would have screamed in panic.

There was the girl, the same girl that she had seen at the cemetery over a year ago.

It looked as though she hadn't aged a day. Her same blond hair with the shimmering red bow, the cool expression in her clear blue eyes nearly making Usagi burst into flames. She leaned against the door frame of the balcony, her Sailor Senshi 'fuku', as Luna called them, accentuated her form, giving her the look of a woman around eighteen or nineteen, maybe even Mamoru's age of twenty.

Usagi wanted to go to her, question her, but there was an aura around this woman, like if Usagi got too close to her, she would evaporate into thin air.

"_Good evening Sailor Moon, Usagi," _she nodded her head, though remaining in the shadows of the night.

Usagi nodded slightly, unsure of what to say.

"_I come today with only this warning," _she said. _"We are running out of time Sailor Moon. You need to work on your true mission."  
_

"My true mission?" Usagi asked.

The older Senshi nodded. _"Find the Maboroshi no Ginzushou."_

"What's that?"

She shook her head. _"It is something that you have to search for yourself Sailor Moon."_

Usagi suddenly felt uneasy. "How will I know what it is?"

"_Believe me," _she said. _"You'll know."_

She turned, stepping on the loveseat on the balcony. _"By the way,"_ she called over her shoulder. _"Do not tell your Luna about this, or even that you've ever seen me, understood?"_

Though she didn't, Usagi nodded anyway.

The woman smiled and leapt off the balcony, the double doors slamming shut behind her.

Luna chose that moment to push the bedroom door open.

"What was that? I heard a noise."

Usagi turned to her nervously. "Oh, uh, the wind blew the doors shut."

"Oh," Luna muttered. "Well get to bed now, you have school in the morning."

She nodded shakily, switching off the light and climbing into her covers, feeling warm as Luna curled up on her chest, her tail wagging back and forth.

"Goodnight Usagi-chan," the cat mumbled, easing into a light slumber.

"'Night, Luna."

But Usagi didn't get any sleep that night, her mind thinking only of the woman, and what she had said. She didn't understand why she couldn't tell Luna about the Maboroshi no Ginzushou; Luna had always been there for her when it came to advice and consolation.

Usagi was really beginning to dread the next time the Senshi decided to visit, for anyone that didn't trust Luna with information, was not an ally in her book.

* * *

"Tsukino-san! Wake up!"

Usagi nearly groaned as she picked her head up slowly off her desk, wishing more than anything that Haruna would just blow up.

"Young lady, the test is already over and you skipped the last page." She picked up the paper and examined it closely.

"Tsukino," she said. "You have got to shape up or you'll never make it through the ninth grade. Detention."

"Gomen."

Usagi sighed, realizing the rest of the day would be a waste of time, so she put her head down and fell asleep.

* * *

"Usagi you promised," Naru said adamantly. "This is the third Friday of the month! We _always_ have sleep overs on the third Friday!"

"I know!" Usagi cried. "But I promise that we can hang out next weekend! Haruna won't let me go on this."

Naru dejectedly crossed her arms over her chest. "We never hang out anymore…"

Usagi's heart panged with guilt.

"_Usa-chan?" a five year old Naru asked, adding a huge clump of sand onto her lumpy sandcastle._

_Usagi brushed the sand off her fingers as she pushed some sticks into her own, misshapen castle. "What?"_

"_No matter what, we have to always tell each other everything, ok? Rui-chan says that best friends tell each other everything."_

_Usagi nodded, her short pigtails bouncing up and down. "I'll tell you anything."_

"_Promise?"_

"_I promise."_

Usagi remembered that promise she made when she was five, and it had been a whole year since she had broken it.

"Tell you what," Usagi said, putting her arm on Naru's shoulder. "Next week, we can go to one of those corny kids' movies they play at the theater and make fun of it; just you and me!"

Naru sighed. "Sure Usagi-chan. Sounds great."

But it didn't. It really didn't sound great at all in her mind, for Naru was almost positive that Usagi would bail out at the last minute.

"See you later."

Naru turned and gathered her bag, not taking notice to the disconsolate look that had infested Usagi's face.

Usagi grabbed her arm. "Naru-chan, are you going to the Arcade now?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Umino-kun and I have to study for next week's geography test. Do you want to come?"

"No, I can't," Usagi said. "But you know my friend Chiba Mamoru, right?"

"Yeah, the really hot one."

"I'll repress my shudder but yes, him. Tell him that I'm going to be late because of detention."

Naru cocked an eyebrow. "Usagi-chan, is there something going on that I should…know about?"

"Oh, ew! Osaka Naru, how could you even suggest that?" Usagi spluttered, taking it upon herself to make regurgitating noises.

Naru shrugged. "Whatever you say, but fine, I'll tell him. But just remember that I'm one of the bridesmaids!" she called over her shoulder as she ran out.

Usagi scowled, dumping her textbooks into her bag and storming out of the classroom and up to room 8-1, or as she referred to it, "Students Alcatraz."

She slowly pushed the door open, surprised to see the room almost empty. Ms. Haruna sat at the front desk, furiously grading papers…she gulped…tests.

"Sit down Tsukino-san. The faster I get these done, the faster you two can go home. Take a seat next to Kino-san, and _no_talking."

Usagi sauntered to the desk, next to the Amazon girl who quietly smiled up at her. Usagi returned the smile, though only halfheartedly. She sat down, quickly pulling out a manga and burying her head into it, the comfort of the familiar pages making her feel more snug than a baby bear resting against its mother.

She felt a tiny prick on the back of her hand, and looking down there was a note neatly folded on her desk. Makoto winked at her, mouthing the words, 'Open it!'

She did as instructed, and unfurled the little paper, reading the semi-neat scrawling.

Makoto: What're you in for Tsukino?

Usagi pulled a fluffy pink pen out of her bag, testing it on the back page of her manga before writing back. She tossed the note back to Makoto's desk, staring coldly back at Ms. Haruna to see if she was looking.

Usagi: Slept through class, failed a test. You?

Makoto quickly scribbled on the note and threw it back to Usagi who easily caught it.

Makoto: Yelled at the coach for making me run an extra lap in P.E.

Usagi: Nice. Did you remember to make fun of the short-shorts he wears?

Makoto: Of course. He did not like that at all. But thank God it's Friday, right?

Usagi: Oh, I know. I'm so tired I think I'm going to faint.

Makoto: That could work if you fake it. I could volunteer to take you to the clinic and she would never see us again…

Usagi: Won't work. I've already tried that before.

Makoto: Darn. We need a Houdini miracle to get out of here.

Usagi: Even then she'd still drag us straight to hell. Face it, the woman's a beast.

Makoto: I think that she eats all her boyfriends and then pushes the bones down her garbage disposal.

Usagi: I know. Umino-kun, the nerdy boy in my class, has kept count. So far this year, she's had fourteen boyfriends. Soon she'll have one for each day of the week.

Makoto: I'd envy the woman if I didn't hate her so much. Umino-kun? Is he the one that kept asking me if I beat up my teacher at my old school?

Usagi: The very one.

Makoto: What a weirdo. Ha, what are you writing with?

Usagi: This is my pen!

Makoto: It looks like you took one of the squirrels from outside, shaved it, died its fur pink and hot glued it to that tiny pen.

Usagi: Gross Makoto!

Makoto: Why are you yelling at me? You're the one that shaves squirrels.

The rest of their conversation went on like this, discussing the importance of saving the trees, why squirrels were so cuddly, why Chihuahuas were so _evil_, and Kyubei Iwao, the guy with a cute butt from class five.

Ms. Haruna never looked up, red penning her papers so furiously that they looked like a battlefield when she was done with them. Usagi gulped; hers was probably D-Day.

When the hour was finally up, Haruna quickly shuffled her papers into the bag, with the exception of one, summoning both Usagi and Makoto up to the front desk.

Usagi was greeted with a test paper shoved in her face.

"Tsukino-san, though I am highly disappointed in your behavior, you seemed to do a wonderful job on this test. Including the five questions you skipped on the last page, you only managed to get eight wrong."

Usagi stopped listening. She had gotten an eighty! And it wasn't out of two hundred and fifty either!

Ms. Haruna snapped her fingers in front of Usagi's face. "And this is the behavior that I'm disappointed in. Tsukino-san, can't you even pay attention when I'm congratulating you?"

Usagi gulped, scratching the back of her head. "Gomen."

Ms. Haruna turned and looked back at the clock, letting a long, exasperated sigh escape her lips. "It would seem that I've kept you two ladies a little longer than necessary. Sorry for that. I'll see you on Monday!"

She walked quickly out of the room, but not before calling over her shoulder, "Whoever's tutoring you Tsukino-san, give them my thanks! Keep up the good work!"

Makoto and Usagi were left in the room, each contemplating the same thing, "I hate her."

They walked together down the hallways, and when they got to the front gates Makoto bid her farewell before sauntering down the sidewalk and disappearing from sight.

"Odango!"

Usagi flinched, turning around as slowly as possible to face an angry Chiba Mamoru and Luna.

"Usagi-chan, I expressly told you that we had a meeting today after school at the Arcade! Where on earth were you?" Luna questioned.

"I got detention…again."

Mamoru sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose while Luna shook her head slowly in disapproval.

"Why?"

"I fell asleep in class and didn't finish my math test," Usagi mumbled, looking down at the tiny ant that was making its way toward her shoe.

Luna groaned. "Usagi…"

"Hey! I got an eighty!"

Mamoru crossed his arms and looked at her doubtfully. "Oh, so you actually listen to me when I help you with your homework?"

Usagi didn't respond.

"Since you failed to meet us at the Crown today," he said. "You're just going to have to wake up extra early tomorrow.

Usagi glared up at him. "Why?"

"If you had been at the meeting, you would know. We're all going to investigate at the site of our last youma battle tomorrow at eight in the morning."

"But it's Saturday! I kind of planned to sleep in until noon!"

"Tough luck Odango."

Usagi was about ready to stomp on his foot when Luna said, "Usagi-chan, who was that girl you were with earlier?"

Usagi frowned. "Makoto-san?"

Luna scoffed. "If I knew her name, I wouldn't be asking you. The tall one with the pony tail."

Usagi nodded. "That's Kino Makoto. She transferred here last year."

"There's something about her…" Luna muttered. "Keep an eye on her Usagi. Become her friend, gain her trust…"

"Why?"

"Because I said so," Luna growled, bounding off towards the direction Makoto had gone. Usagi stared after her.

"What was that all about?"

Mamoru cleared his throat. "I don't know Odango. I kind of learned to accept Luna's abnormality a long time ago."

Usagi turned around to look at him. "Gotta go Mamoru-baka. Mom's making pot roast tonight."

He nodded. "Do you need me to walk you home?"

"No, I'm okay."

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow Odango. By the way, if you oversleep, I will come and drag you out of bed myself, understood?"

"Crystal clear."

He clicked his tongue, turning around and sauntering off towards his apartment. Usagi watched him go before slowly heading the opposite direction. She had lied; her mom wasn't making pot roast. Shingo was staying at a friend's house and her mother and father were going to a charity event for her dad's work across the city, and they'd probably end up staying at a hotel for the night.

But Usagi wasn't about to let Mamoru know that. The less time she spent with that insufferable jerk, the better.

* * *

**Review!!! Or No more chapters for you!!!**

And as for the whole boob smacking scene, it had to be done to raise self awareness. Guys, it really does hurt. Lay off.


	7. Chapter 7

Whoo hoo! New Chapter. Sorry for the semi-delay. With all the Christmas parties, work, and much needed sleep that I've been getting, I'm surprised that I am even able to post this tonight. Who else is ready for Christmas break, or the Holiday break (had to throw that out there just incase)?

WITH TIME COMES NEW CHAPTERS, SO EXPECT SOME THEN! By the way, don't own Sailor Moon. She took the Maboroshi no Ginzushou, packed her bags and left because so far in this story I've made her a complete whimp.

This will change by the way.

And last but not least, xGekkeiju:  
Chapter four: Thanks for the reviews, I really do apreciate them. You're right, school pretty much sucks right now. But you'll find that Luna is going to be portrayed very differently in this story than you may have thought...she is very spunky. And I'm really trying to get a handle on how I portray my characters, especially Mamoru, for I watched him very closely when editing this chapter. Let me know what you think about his character development so far.

Chapter five: The mysterious figure...maybe she is Sailor Venus...maybe not...I can't tell yet. And I love to see Usagi go into 'run like hell' mode. It makes me feel better about myself somehow....? ;) And I felt that I had to wrap up chapter five quickly because all the rest of the chapters, starting with six are meant to be long and more informative than the others. And it had been around a week since I updated so I wanted to start out the chapter with a familiar scene that would actually make the rest of the chapter make sense. You know what I mean? And I know that I'm just_ terrible_ with my descriptions...one of my weakest points in writing. It would be my luck to not have the ability to write one of the most powerful and important aspects of a story. The dialogue wasn't my best, I'll admit, and I'm trying much harder to fix it up to its normal quality, and I hope it's good in this chapter.

Chapter Six: Thank you...I didn't really know that that there were that many ways to use ROFLMAO! I was in a bad mood when going through my emails and then I open up the review and I laughed so hard that I almost crashed my laptop due to gravity issues. lol. HELL YES IT HURTS! But I do know that guys get sick from it. I was at my friend's part, and somehow we all got into some huge kind of wrestling match...my friend Amanda kicked him there and he was so sick he actually threw up. :P. Poor Hank. And I did take what you said into account when editing this chapter about not including unnecessary scenes, and I hope that this is a little better. But Makoto was already introduced a year back when Usagi was on her way home, and it said then that she was the freaky Amazon girl. I only mentioned that in chapter six just to jog people's memories. And really, the only reason I had her called Kino-san at first was because Ms. Haruna would have called her that out of respect, and I just had Usagi call her that too...must be laziness, it gets to the best of us. Wait...I don't even know if that made sense...disregard. Thanks for the review, er, _reviews_. And though I'm sure this chapter may not be as humorous as the last, because we're finally getting down to business, I hope that you still manage to find some kind of bad joke to crack again...:)

RAWR! (?)

Please Review. It makes me happy. And thank you to all my reviewers who DO review. Last month this story recieved over 700 hits, and I only got maybe ten reviews.

REVIEW!

* * *

Never Walk It Off

Chapter 7

By sakanascales876

* * *

"Up. Get up," a monotonous voice called as broad hands shook at her shoulders.

Usagi groaned, picking up a pillow from beside her and whacking the intruder upside the head. But she was even more surprised when somebody thumped her back, making her poke her head out from underneath the pillow she had wallowed beneath, staring irately at the headboard.

"Mamoru-baka, get out of my house!" she moaned, muffling her cry of frustration as she buried her face into the mattress.

"You're such a baka, Usagi-baka," her little monster-err-brother Shingo said. "Mamoru-san's downstairs waiting for you."

"Tell him I'm sick."

"He said he doesn't care if you're dying; you're going with him."

"Tell him I'm in the shower."

"He said he didn't care; he'd drag you out in public in your birthday suit."

"Tell him I'm dead!"

"We both know that hell would spit you right back out Odango Atama."

This time, when Usagi chucked the pillow, Mamoru reached out a strong hand and caught it, tucking it neatly under his arm. Shingo snickered and left the room, quietly sneaking a hand into one of her dresser drawers and darting out of the room with something that looked suspiciously like Usagi's diary.

She nearly screamed in agitation as he came up behind her and placed the pillow softly on her back before hopping onto the bed and situating himself on her, his long legs swinging idly over the side.

He smirked as she made a struggled gurgling noise, trying to get up, but promptly falling back down as her arms gave out.

"Come on Odango, I know you've got more muscle than that," he mocked, glancing down at the mountain of golden hair that was tangled all around her head.

He assumed that her muffled reply was a death threat, so he sighed, swinging his legs over the side and lying against her back, completely stretched out. His legs easily stretching at least a foot past the tips of her toes, which were incredible soft, he mused. He crossed his arms behind his head and stared at the pink speckled ceiling.

He felt Usagi struggle beneath him enough to turn her head to the side, though her cheeks were smashed against the mattress.

"You're-crushing me!" she wheezed.

"Yeah," he said. "And you have troll hair in the morning, which by the way looks like it's going to be a pain in the neck for you to brush."

Below, she grumbled something incoherently, one hand escaping from underneath him and clawing into his shoulder.

"Get off of me," she growled, digging her nails into his skin.

She was impressed when he didn't flinch, but her own nails started to hurt from applying the pressure into his muscles.

"You could have come quietly, you know?"

She almost wept. "I don't want to get up."

He cocked an eyebrow. "Oh, so you want me to stay here and just lay on you. It's manageable."

If she had had mobility of her arms then, she would have thrown them up and floundered them about, all while incessantly shrieking, "Ewwwww!!!!!"

But instead, she settled for snarling, "That's not what I meant."

"I know."

He almost seemed to leap off of her, running his hand through his hair and straightening his collar. To spite him, Usagi made a plethora of odd squelching and choking and gurgling noises before listlessly rising from her bed and turning over to her alarm clock.

What she saw made her scream, but Mamoru planted a hand over her mouth until she calmed down.

"You woke me up at seven thirty on a Saturday?" she shrieked.

"I'm so happy for you Odango. You finally learned how to tell time."

She was sorely tempted to slap him across the cheek. "You told me that I didn't need to be there until eight!"

"Yes, and I would had believed you had I not known you. Your translation of meet me at eight stands for: wake up at seven fifty five, rush around your house to get ready, and then finally show up at around eight forty. Just be happy that I didn't decide to wake you up earlier; I've been here for the past thirty five minutes discussing ways to prune roses with your mother. Though the only intelligent conversation that I've received yet today, we need to get going. "

She opened her mouth to retort, but he held up a hand to silence her. "Just get ready Odango; I can't waste my whole day here with you. I've got a chemistry class at three."

He promptly pushed her towards her closet, ignoring the murderous glances that were casted her way.

Usagi sighed, rummaging through her mountain of clothes before choosing a lavender long sleeved t-shirt and a pleated white skirt that ran a couple inches above her knees.

She stalked off to the bathroom, making sure to slide the door shut forcefully enough to make any unsuspecting person flinch before changing out of her pajamas and brushing her teeth.

She tried to make a quick job of brushing her hair, and she grudgingly agreed that it was messier than a troll dolls. Every time she tried to gently brush it, it would snag, making her yelp and let the hairbrush clatter to the floor.

She felt Mamoru rapt lightly on the door. "Odango, what's the hold up?"

Hoping that he had his ear pressed against it, Usagi slammed her fist onto the wooden surface, triumphant when she heard him utter a curse.

"I'm going as fast as I can baka!" she bellowed, tears bubbling at the corners of her eyes as she tried vehemently to brush through a particularly difficult knot.

"You're moving about as fast as Motoki when he forgets to wear his apron!"

She rolled her eyes, starting to get extremely impatient with the knot. Mamoru then decided to punch his fist against the door, making Usagi yelp as the hairbrush snagged and tore out a clump of long, golden strands.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" she cried, clenching her fists uselessly in front of her face. She closed her eyes as tears silently gushed down her face, biting her bottom lip so furiously that she was sure it would pop like a balloon.

Mamoru suddenly became very silent on the other side of the wall, but Usagi didn't seem to notice as she buried her face in her hands and slowly began to cry.

There was a quiet, almost inaudible knock on the door.

"Odango…are you alright?"

"No, you baka!" she accused. "You made me rip my hair out!"

She felt him pause on the other side of the door. "Oh."

There was no noise for a while, and Usagi took the time to wipe the tears from her face, picking the chunks of abused hair out of her hairbrush.

A few moments later, there was another rapt on the door, except this one was much louder than the first.

"What happened, honey?"

Ikuko slid open the door, calmly stepping over and enveloping Usagi into a hug. She peered over her mother's shoulder, noticing Mamoru standing directly behind her, looking uncomfortably towards the floor.

When he noticed her eyes on him, his own sprinted up to meet her gaze, the left side of his mouth twitching in a half smile, as if to convey some sort of apology. She stared dubiously back at him, her eyes eventually slipping away from his and lolling off to the side.

Ikuko picked up the brush, expertly fixing the mountain of rat's nests into the traditional Odango in less than a couple of minutes, Usagi all the while relaxing under the gentle touch, trying to keep her eyes away from Mamoru who was standing hesitantly in the doorway.

When Ikuko had finished, she leaned down and kissed Usagi on the cheek, patting her comfortingly on the shoulder.

"Be more careful with your hair, honey. It's starting to get too long to manage."

Usagi stared up at her in horror. "I am _not_ getting a hair cut!"

Her mother giggled, waving it off and placing the brush back on the counter. "We'll see about that the next time you pull your hair out."

Usagi grumbled as Ikuko exited the bedroom, stopping only to pat Mamoru on the shoulder.

She smiled up at him. "It was a pleasure having you here again Mamoru-san."

He nodded nervously, a blush dripping down his ears. "Thank you for having me."

Her smile broadened, and Ikuko left the room.

Usagi walked out of the bathroom and straight past Mamoru, grabbing a pair of her white sneakers. "Let's go," she said resignedly.

He cleared his throat, something she had notice him do a lot in order to clear the air.

She turned to him.

"Are you okay now?" he asked, staring at Usagi's shelf of stuffed animals.

She nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'm fine," she whispered.

"Good. The last thing I need today was to have to drag a comatose body downtown just because you can't keep your balance."

Before she could yell, he quickly walked out of the room, an angry Usagi in tow. He lightly held the door open for her, busying himself by looking at his watch.

"We're late Odango. Luna's going to kill us, and it's hard enough putting up with her as it is."

Usagi shrugged as Mamoru tossed her a helmet and helped her on the back of his motorcycle. Though she had been on it many times in the past year, Usagi couldn't help but feel nervous as he turned it on and pulled away from her driveway.

She snaked her arms around his waist, her nails clawing into his stomach as he struggled with laughter and sped down the ignorant streets of Tokyo.

* * *

"I think I should start on the inside and check every floor. You scale the perimeter for _anything_ that looks strange, okay?"

Usagi groaned, resting her head against Mamoru's shoulder. "I don't want to be here."

He sighed in agitation, pushing her head away and snapping his finger in front of her sleepy face.

"We're only going to try and find anything that has been marked on the building. I'm not asking you to do something out of your brain capacity like…studying."

Usagi hissed at him.

"What are you, a cat?" he scoffed.

"I'll bite your bloody arm off!"

He smirked at her. "Only if you can reach it, Shorty."

He was rewarded with a barrage of punches and slaps, but he only grinned, irking her further.

Luna sighed, deciding that it was finally time to intervene.

"Cut it out," she mumbled dispassionately. What was the use? "Stop fighting."

Usagi glowered down at the cat, baring her teeth. "Quiet! If somebody sees you---"

"And you think that I'm the one that's going to be attracting all the attention with you two ready to rip each other's toes off? I think not," Luna said smartly, sticking her nose in the air. "We need to get going if we're going to be able to find substantial evidence today."

"I'm not doing _anything_ with that creep!" Usagi cried. "He can go jump off a cliff!"

Mamoru frowned down at her. "Ditto."

"Fine," Luna sighed in agitation. "Mamoru-kun, go inside and look through the floors of the museum, specifically the sculpting exhibit that we fought in."

He nodded, muttering something unintelligible and whisking into the building and out of Usagi's sight.

"Usagi-chan, let's scale the outside."

Usagi groaned. "Am I going to have to climb up anything?"

Luna glanced up at her. "Perhaps if there's anything worth looking at."

Usagi's shoulders slumped. "Can you at least shift into a human so I don't look like a freak talking down at her cat?"

Luna nodded before leaping into the air, her paws and dainty legs stretching and expanding and the fur receding before a human Luna stood before her, a good half a foot taller than herself. Usagi discreetly handed her the disguise pen, allowing Luna to change into somewhat normal clothes instead of the vibrant yellow dress that she normally wore.

They walked in silence, Usagi running her hands along the brick walls of the museum, Luna closely examining the ground. The sun was bludgeoning them with clubs of heat, and Usagi found a sheen of sweat covering her brow. Frowning, she turned to Luna whom was staring at one particular expanse of concrete with concentration.

"Luna?" Usagi asked, tapping the woman gently on the shoulder.

"Hmm?"

"Can I go get a drink from a vending machine?" she inquired. "It's really hot out here, and I'll get something for you."

Luna didn't look up. "I would prefer that you didn't."

"Please?" Usagi begged. "It's so hot out here."

Luna sighed in agitation. "Fine, fine. But _hurry up!_ It's going to take another couple of hours just to examine this side of the building."

That was all Usagi heard before she darted off, ignoring the exasperated shout from behind her. That cat was just so…overbearing sometimes!

Nearing the vending machines, Usagi stopped and pulled out a couple yen and put them in the coin slot, quickly punching in the numbers she had memorized since she was a little girl.

"Oolong tea for Luna…" she fumbled in the slot and pulled out the long can. "And iced tea for Usagi."

She winced as she turned around, spotting the place where Tuxedo Kamen had blasted the youma through the wall. Though the gaping hole wasn't there anymore, there were still many diced up slabs of concrete and debris littering the ground.

Usagi looked over her shoulder and behind her to see if anyone was around before walking quietly over to the area which was still marked off with construction tape. She inaudibly stretched under the signs of caution before cautiously making her way through the rubble, trying desperately not to step on anything sharp.

There were some green splatters sporadically placed on chunks of glass, pipe and concrete. She presumed with as shudder that this was probably the youma's blood. There was a fresh splotch of white paint covering up the wall, making it seem a bit out of place compared to the rest of the tan building.

She ran her hands over the smooth wall, inspecting to see if there was anything odd about it. And there was something odd about it. It was shaped in a perfect oval, not a bump of a crack out of place where it was blown up.

That's odd, Usagi mused, taking a step back.

"Ouch!" she cried, wincing and grasping her foot in pain. In the corner, a jagged piece of the wall had pierced her shoe, and Usagi winced as she tried to keep her cry of pain from spilling over.

She looked murderously down at the offending piece of debris, ready to repay it with a sharp kick before she noticed something near the very bottom of the wall in the corner.

It was carved neatly into the side of the wall, and smoothly, too. Not like when someone took a large stick and scratched their names into fresh concrete either.

It almost looked like a dagger, with a long frame and a slender point extending all the way up to the curly handle. And crossed right through the center of it were two identical V's. One was right side up and the other upside down.

Usagi didn't know whether this was something suspicious or not, but nonetheless, she reached for the communicator and pressed the button that would connect to Luna.

"Usagi-chan, what is it? It's been over fifteen minutes already! Where are you?" she hissed, and Usagi saw her face steadily going red on the small screen.

"Luna, I think I've found something. It looks like a carving in the wall, but it could be something that some kid drew."

Luna's face became grim. "Are you still by the vending machines?"

"Yes," Usagi answered.

"I'll be there in one minute. I'm going to call Mamoru-san first, though."

Usagi groaned. "Can't we just leave him up there?"

Before Luna could scold her, she slammed the lid shut and knelt down to where the tiny carving was, putting one hand higher up on the wall to maintain her balance.

She held out her other hand and tried to see if any type of dark magic could be withdrawn or sensed. Her fingertips glowed white for a few moments before sparks of black began to manifest.

She lowered the hand, squinting down at it, her tongue sticking out as she chewed the inside of her cheek.

She extended her arm again, but this time, she slowly reached out and brushed her fingers against it, regretting the action immediately. She recoiled, gasping in pain as she stared in shock at the hand that was starting to turn a deep purple, almost black.

The pain was excruciating, and she found herself digging her nails into her arm so harshly that blood was starting to drip out. It felt worse than getting burned, as if her entire hand was just resting in the middle of a fire, and the dark fingers clenched and unclenched as her entire arm shook.

Usagi slumped against the wall, muffling her scream of agony as her hand accidentally thumped against the wall. Tears threatened to spill, but she didn't care and let them fall, her shoulders trembling as she cried silently from the pain.

She just hoped and prayed that nobody found her like this. The last thing she needed was innocent people snooping around here and taking their evidence. She couldn't tell if her hand was bleeding or not either. The sight was too terrible and made her want to vomit when she saw the mangled hand.

She had her eyes closed so tightly that she didn't even see the face of whoever had their broad hands on her shoulder.

"Odango…my God…what happened?"

Thank God, she thought, lifting her eyes up to meet Mamoru's frantic ones, which were now closely examining her hand. Tears spilled from her eyes, but she managed to choke out,

"Carving in the corner of the wall! Look!"

He frowned, turning to look at the spot that Usagi was frantically shaking her head at. He must have noticed the carving, because he firmly shook her shoulders, making her meet his eyes.

"Did you touch it?" he asked.

Usagi nodded, tears falling down her face. She just wanted the pain to stop. It would be less painful to chop the hand clean off.

Mamoru sighed and raked a hand through his hair, shifting his eyes in every direction until Luna showed up behind him.

"What's going on?" she questioned. "Usagi-chan, what's wrong?"

Usagi whimpered and shook her head, her pig tails flying back and forth.

"Luna, there's a mark in the corner over there…I don't know what it is but she touched it." Mamoru said.

Luna bent down to examine it for a few moments before drawing away with a gasp.

Mamoru looked at her with a scowl. "Well what is it?" he bellowed.

Turning to him with a grim expression on her face, Luna whispered, "It's the mark of Metallia."

Metallia…it sounded so familiar. Usagi knew that she must have heard Luna and Mamoru talk about it almost a million times. She wanted to ask about it, but the pain kept her biting furiously on her upper lip.

She could not read Mamoru's expression. It was so dark and comprehensive that she was almost afraid to even look at him.

Mamoru, while one hand was clenched around Usagi's shoulder, the other came to clasp his chin in thought. "What's the meaning of all this?"

Luna didn't respond, but Mamoru already knew why. She didn't know. Nobody knew. He sighed, turning his attention back to Usagi, who was now breathing heavily in a vain attempt to alleviate the pain. He scooped her up into his arms, grunting as he settled her weight and began to walk away, Luna keeping pace with him, soothingly smoothing out Usagi's hair as they made their way back to the Azabu apartments.

* * *

Usagi sighed in relief as Mamoru slowly began to weave the energy out of her hand. Though it ran through her entire arm now, the dull throbbing was a mosquito bite compared to the pain she had experienced before. Looking to his face, she noticed how his face was scrunched up in concentration, and he was gently scraping his lip with his teeth as he often did. And there it was; the bluish-white glow that pulsated from his hands, completely abolishing the dark energy from her arm. It still ached, but she was grateful.

Mamoru groaned and fell back onto the leather couch, one elbow to support himself while the other rested on the back of the couch.

Usagi was quiet hesitant. "Are you alright?"

He didn't look at her, but at the modern clock on the wall. "Good job Odango Atama. Thanks to you, I won't be making it to chemistry today."

"Oh, Heaven forbid you miss one day of class," she mocked before reaching out to slap him in the arm, immediately feeling guilty when she remembered the fragile state that he was in.

Glaring up at her, he reached out and tugged on one of her pig tails. "Well it would seem that somebody managed to make a miraculous recovery."

Nodding vigorously, Usagi wagged her finger back and forth. "That's your fault for…for…what exactly did you do?"

"I'm psychometric Odango." He rolled his eyes and fell back onto the couch, staring at the ceiling.

"Okay," she said. "And I find it hilarious that you actually think that I know what that means."

His eyes flickered to hers. "It's the ability to retain information about an object by touching it…but if I focus it really well, I can use it to heal, though the results are usually exhaustion and faintness."

Suddenly attentive, Usagi sat up. "Were you able to see my thoughts?"

"Odango, it doesn't work like that."

"But did you see them?" She grasped his arm. "Even the basic idea of them?"

He grinned. "Yes."

"What did you see?" Usagi shouted, shaking his arm. "WHAT DID YOU SEE?"

He chuckled, and Usagi immediately smacked his arm. "You're lying! Jerk!"

He pushed her away. "Yeah, well now I know that the next time I so that to search through your thoughts to see what kind of secret is so important for you to keep from me."

Usagi scowled at him, wanting to strike him so badly but not finding the energy to do so. She fell back onto the couch with a shudder and a sigh, her legs entangled with his as they half sat, half laid across from each other.

"Where'd that sudden burst of energy go Odango?" Mamoru drawled, lightly kicking her in the leg.

Usagi kicked him back, her eyes closed. "Stop it," she groaned.

"Make me," he countered.

But he didn't kick her anymore, because she coughed first. A long, incessant amount of coughs that had Mamoru sitting up and nervously patting her back.

"Are you okay?"

She shook her head, but immediately regretted the action. "Don't feel good."

He shot back like he'd been burned, putting his hands up defensively. "You'd better not puke on my couch…"

"Not that kind of sick!" she shouted. "Like…fever sick."

Mamoru cocked and eyebrow. "Fever sick? Care to elaborate on that one Odango?"

"I feel like the sky just dropped an atomic bomb to the earth, let it dissolve into my head and then explode, screwing my brain up so that nothing in my body functions like they should."

"There's only one problem with your theory, Odango." Mamoru said, tilting his chin back towards the ceiling.

Usagi's back tensed. "What is that?" she asked very slowly, daring him to continue.

He dared. "Your brain's already so screwed up that your border lining insanity."

She raised a hand to smack him and her tongue nearly spat venom until Luna walked back into the room.

She eyed them suspiciously. "I see that you've healed Usagi-chan. Is everything okay in here?"

They nodded simultaneously.

The cat-woman raised a thin black eyebrow, but quickly shook it off.

"Mamoru-kun, did you get the dark energy out of her?"

He nodded. "Yes, but it seems like her hand isn't completely healed yet. It's still purple, and she's experiencing feverish symptoms. Should we be worried….?"

Luna shook her head. "I don't think so. But she can't go home looking like that."

She turned swiftly towards Usagi. "I've already deluded your parents into thinking that you're spending the night at Naru's…weren't you planning to go there this weekend anyway?"

"Yeah," Usagi said. "But we cancelled because of detention. And my mom's going to call Mrs. Osaka in the morning because tomorrow's still a school night."

Luna waved it off. "I've tapped into their phone lines so that if they try to call Osaka-san then it will come straight here."

Usagi raised a skeptic eyebrow. "And just how," she paused for another onslaught of coughs. "Did you manage to pull that off?"

"Control Center," Luna said.

A silence wafted throughout the room. Mamoru continued to stare at the ceiling, Luna leant against the wall, watching the motionless T.V., and Usagi stole glances at the both of them, wondering which one was going to say something first, for she didn't have anything worth uttering.

She was almost asleep when she heard Luna say to Mamoru, "Can she stay the night here? With my supervision of course…"

"Why not?" Mamoru shrugged. "You guys practically live here anyway…if you need proof go ask my empty refrigerator."

"If it's empty, then how can it reply?"

"Enough with the astuteness Luna," Mamoru growled. "I just want to know why the hell the Dark Kingdom is marking down buildings like a battleship board."

She could hear the bitterness in Luna's voice. "And you think that I don't?"

Mamoru didn't seem to answer for quite a long time. "There just has to be a connection with everything. We have to find a way to predict the next attack."

"The star shaped map, the energy collections, the people dead, the patterns…Mamoru-kun, there is no connection…yet."

"But we're running out of time to find one," Mamoru pointed out. "From what you showed us…there's around fourteen youma attacks left until Tokyo Tower's taken out. What do you think's going to happen once they finish the pattern, up and move on to another city?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," she mumbled. "But it's time Mamoru-kun. The rest of our allies must be found."

Allies? Usagi nearly bolted upright. Allies?! There were more of them to fight? Why would Luna of all people keep this a secret, when she knew that it was so difficult for the two of them to fight by themselves? Doubt began to creep up her spine like a cougar on the prowl.

"_Watch out for that damn cat; she'll be nothing but trouble."_

And suddenly, Usagi seemed to think that whoever that girl was wasn't looking so much like an enemy anymore.

* * *

The floor began to shake, books began to fly off the shelves, and even the furniture began to thrash about in a violent manor.

Usagi yelped as she felt Mamoru's hands steady her shaking shoulders, though the vibrations under her feet were still strong.

"What's going on?" Usagi shrieked, grasping his arm frantically.

"I don't know!" he shouted back. "The whole city's out of power!"

But his hands weren't the only ones reaching for her anymore, for two others clasped around her and pulled her away, ignoring Mamoru's cry of outrage.

She screamed and thrashed and kicked until she heard the person scream, "Heavens child! It's only me!"

Usagi stopped and relaxed into Luna's arms as she was dragged out onto the balcony seconds before Mamoru came bursting out.

"Luna you scared the living hell out of me!" he gasped, clutching on hand to his heart.

Luna shook her head. "Look to the sky!" she cried, pointing overhead.

They did.

It was a man, well, half of a man with a long, dirty blond pony tail that fell down his back, his emerald eyes flickering in the moonlight. He looked familiar with the almond shaped eyes and pointed jaw…but Usagi couldn't quite place it. His skin was slightly tanned, his nose prominent, though she couldn't see more than that. It was a translucent vision in the sky, and the man's body only reached down to his shoulders, and he let out a horrendous laugh that boomed in the sky, frightening her worse than even thunder does.

"_Sailor Moon," _he called. _"Tuxedo Kamen, where are you?"_

He chuckled before opening his mouth and spitting a fire to the ground, the heat so real that it seemed as though all of Tokyo was being burned.

The illusion disappeared after a few moments, and Usagi could have sworn that she heard the entire city sigh with relief.

"_We seem to have a problem you two. We're starting to get really bored with this routine; you defeating us as we escape with the energy…it's very tedious work."_

His wine red lips curled into one of the most evil grins that Usagi had ever seen.

"_This Friday, we're going to attack the Tokyo Performing Arts Center. When, you won't know, but how…"_

Usagi and Mamoru both exchanged glances before looking back to the sky.

"_You have the option not to show…but if you don't, then we're going to pick a different location in the city and kill everyone there. I hope you understand."_

He mocked a little bow with gloved hands before cackling.

"_Until Friday…"_

The vision disappeared, and the city was quiet.

Usagi and Mamoru didn't say anything, but continued to stare at the sky, as they were sure that everyone else was doing at that moment.

"Odango?"

Usagi jolted and looked up at him. "Huh?"

"You remember when I told you about each of the Shitennou?"

She nodded.

"That was Zoicite. But I'm going to tell you know…this isn't good. Something's wrong with this picture. Zoicite never plays fair, and he would _never_ give us the location of a battle. It's a trap…I know it is."

"But if we don't go…" Usagi whispered. "Everyone will die."

And Mamoru knew that the heroes and the villains had just reached a stalemate.

* * *

  
Ho...tough moments for out heroes...what will happen? Let me know what you thought! Criticism is constructive and builds strong bones, just like milk. :)  
I know that there seemed to be a lack of humor in this chapter, but not to fear! I will not disappoint...depending on the perspective.

REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


	8. Chapter 8

Well, here is another chapter, where things finally start to heat up with battle and emotions. Might I just say, I am truly a bit disappointed about last chapter. I've been making the chapters longer, and I got a grand total of six reviews last chapter. Six. So please, just drop in and give a review...or you might not see another chapter until March. Just kidding, but I could do it...thank you to those who do review though, it's much appreciated. I don't know why, but I seem to be writing a lot of reviews for stories recently. Don't know why exactly...and I'm kind of confused. **But I have a question: I am almost completely finished writing this story, but I felt strongly about this, so even though if I have to rewrite have of it, I was thinking: DO YOU LIKE REI/SAILOR MARS? Tell me what you think, it will have a huge role later. :)**

Don't own Sailor Moon. I do own Tamotsu, my dog, and the alligator that lives in my water main though.

**xGejkkeiju: **I honestly tried to send you this chapter, but with my *outstanding* luck, my e-mail has become possessed and is speaking to me in tongues. So, I have no clue if you got it, and I had to contact hotmail to help me fix my account. I haven't been able to send or recieve e-mails in a week. If you're still up to it, when my e-mail's fixed, I'll send you the next chapter if you want to edit it for me. But I had to do a lousy job by myself for this chapter. Sorry :(

-Enjoy

* * *

Never Walk it Off

Chapter 8

By sakanascales876

* * *

"We have no choice," Luna said gravely, her dark head bowed towards the carpet. "We have to go."

"I don't trust him Luna," Mamoru said, his voice rising slightly. No, he wasn't yelling, but Usagi knew that it was about to get to that point in a moment. "We have to come up with some kind of plan…this is a trap; I know it."

"I understand that boy!" Luna snarled, her sharp canines nibbling on the skin around her nails. "But how on earth can we come up with a plan when we don't even know what they're plotting?"

Usagi noticed as Mamoru's teeth clenched along with his hands. She felt as though she was standing next to a boulder heavy enough to crash through every floor of the apartment building.

"I don't know…" he finally said, not meeting their eyes. She didn't know what they were meeting.

Usagi grasped her arm and looked down at the streets of Tokyo, shuddering at the fact that probably every person in the city was talking about them right then. Though it slightly repulsed her, a shiver spread throughout her body as the fear and self-loathing began to settle in. All these people. Every single damn one counted on her to protect their city, and she couldn't even do that right. Her knuckles turned white as she grabbed onto the railing and squeezed with all the strength in her body. Thank goodness she wasn't Sailor Moon, or that railing would have been easily molded into the shape of her closed fist, something that Mamoru would have never let go.

He scooted beside her, arms resting on the smooth metal as he leant over the side, his silky black hair cascading past his forehead and hanging limply like pine needles.

Had the wind been blowing any harder, she wouldn't have heard him whisper, "What should we do?"

She didn't let go. She didn't look at him. "I don't know, but we can't let those people die."

He nodded in a silent understanding. It was something that she knew that only the two of them would ever have to face. No one on this planet had ever had to deal with something this difficult. And although they always fought, Usagi was somewhat glad that they were able to sink into solemnity so easily when it came to the peace of the Earth.

Suddenly, she turned to face him, greeted only by the white cotton of his shirt. "Why would they do this?" she inquired. "What could have brought this on? I mean, they still have to finish the pattern, right? There has to be something that they could gain from this or they wouldn't have told us exactly where they were going to strike next."

Mamoru didn't say anything for a while, which greatly annoyed Usagi. She knew she was being childish; how could someone answer that? But when he stood completely still, no emotion showing on his face…it really bothered her. What was he thinking? And his eyes seemed as empty as her mom's fishbowl cookie jar on Tuesday. Ikuko never baked on Tuesdays anymore. Tamotsu always came over on Tuesdays for cookies and whatever her mom had cooked on that day.

"We're going to have to fight this battle, aren't we?" she whispered.

He smirked, but matched with the look in his eyes, it only made him seem more sinister. "For once in your life, you finally got something correct."

She would have smacked him, and she would have yelled at him, but it wasn't worth it. Too much was happening, and just like that, Usagi finally understood what Luna had said to her a year ago in the graveyard.

"_You are Sailor Moon, and nothing you can do will change it."_

_She remembered her angry protest, her blood simmering. "But I don't want to be….Sailor Moon!" _

"_You don't have a choice."_

You don't have a choice---it rang through her head more times than her house phone did when it was called by solicitors. That sentence…so final, so resolute. But the worst part was that she knew it was true, and that everyone in the city, no…world was counting on her.

Her head clanged on the railing, nearly startling Mamoru as he looked down at her still form.

She shook her head against the metal. "Why is this happening?"

"You'll never change, will you?" Mamoru asked incredulously.

Usagi swiveled her eyes up at him, not sure whether to be angry or…she didn't know what she was supposed to be.

"What?" she asked.

He sensed the edge in her voice and shook his head. "You're still asking all these questions that nobody can answer."

Despite herself, she grinned. "And you're always providing insufficient answers."

"But," he began. "It isn't necessarily bad to be curious."

This threw her off. It almost threw her clear off the balcony, down the fire escapes and into the traffic below to be smashed and mutilated by the thousands of cars that wouldn't give a damn.

"Um…how is that a good thing?"

He shrugged and turned around so that he faced the sliding glass doors of the apartment, leaning his back against the railing and clasping his fingers together. "I didn't say it was a good thing, it just isn't bad either."

"How do you figure?"

"Well, I always find that when questions are asked, answers eventually come."

She didn't respond for a while. "We don't have time to sit around and wait for the answer to come to us though, baka. We've got until Friday, and if we can't figure it out by then, we'll all be screwed."

And for once, the ever witty Chiba Mamoru who lived to contradict the very air that she breathed did not have a response at all.

* * *

The past five days had been pure unadulterated horror. Her breath hitched every single time she ripped a page off of her funny animal calendar, and Usagi wished that she could just get a glue stick and put the papers back on so Friday would never come.

Everyone everywhere was talking about it. Rather, everywhere everyone was talking about it. And any type of newscaster or media spokesperson was making a beeline towards Tokyo, for anywhere she went, she felt as though she was being watched.

And in a way, she was.

Everyone was looking for Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen. Some called them cowards, but most things she heard were about how she and Mamoru were going to just swoop in and save the day.

But that was what made things the worst. Every single person in the city seemed to count on the fact that they had heroes protecting them from all evils so that they could just go on with their ordinary and ignorant lives. But then again, every single person in the city didn't know that their heroes consisted of a twenty year old brilliant college kid and a fifteen year old high school cry baby. Usagi was ready to pull her hair out and scream, "Just leave me alone!" Luna however, would not appreciate that.

Luna and Mamoru on the other hand started acting like Batman and Robin, and the Control Center in the Sailor V game at the Crown Arcade was their bat cave. However, Usagi avoided both of them, avoiding the moment when she would be called out to start extensive training that would result in her missing an arm and a leg by the end of the week.

But this only lasted so long until the two of them nearly dragged her out of her window, shoved her into the backseat of Mamoru's car, and forced her into the control center with absolutely no means of escape.

Usagi pretended to play the piano on her knees. "So," she approached carefully. "What's the game plan?"

Luna rolled her eyes. "I don't know. Perhaps if you showed up for our meetings you would actually know."

Guilt. Metaphorically, she pulled out the guilt hat and placed it on her head, avoiding Luna's accusatory eyes and Mamoru's unreadable ones.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "But it wasn't exactly my choice to spend this week contemplating how we're going to prevent the destruction of the earth."

"The choice of whether or not to fight is ours to make, but selfishness is not a luxury we can afford when our decision is going to affect every single person that walks this earth."

Mamoru's voice hid an undertone of accusation, and this was one of the few times that Usagi could actually read what he was thinking.

She stood up, her face contorted in anger.

"You think that I'm selfish? You think that I want to spend my high school life fighting evil monsters?" She could feel her face go red from anger, but that didn't make calm down nonetheless. "Do you honestly believe in that arrogant head of yours that I don't know that whatever decision I make is going to affect my family, my friends, everyone? That's not something that I want to deal with!"

His head lifted and his brows furrowed. "You think I want to concentrate on that either, Odango? You've gone gallivanting around this entire week with friends and family and completely disregarding the fact that tomorrow, because of what we do, they're not going to be here! You need to concentrate on something other than having fun!"

"So what do you want me to do, Mamoru? Just ignore everyone and fight all the time? Fail school, forget my family, leave my friends?" Usagi snarled. "Did it ever occur to you that I might not want to be Sailor Moon, and that I just want to have a normal life and forget about everything and be as ignorant to all of this as anybody else in Tokyo? In the world?"

Luna watched from the sidelines, and had she been in cat form, Usagi just knew that she'd see her tail swish back and forth.

Mamoru rolled his eyes. "Yeah, and I'm generally ecstatic about losing sleep every night while running around in a tuxedo stopping monsters who are trying to kill me. Seriously Odango, we don't have a choice in this. You need to grow up and accept responsibility for what's been bestowed upon you. I'm not telling you to abandon your family and friends. I'm telling you that unless you shape up and act more mature, a lot of people are going to die at _your_ hands."

Fingers slightly twitching, Usagi found that hitting him would make her feel a lot better. But she wanted to hurt him deeply, and sharpened her tongue into a sword.

"You think that it would be really easy to do that, wouldn't you? Just immerse myself in being a soldier and nothing else?" Usagi's nails dug into her palms. "Well just because you're anti-social, act like you have an icicle sticking up your ass all the time, and your family's dead, doesn't mean that it's going to be easy for me to let _my life_ go. You may be Mr. Calm-Cool-and-Collected, but I'm not like that, and I don't ever want to be."

Not even a particle of dust moved in the room.

Mamoru's jaw tensed, and she could tell that his fists clenched in his pockets as his entire body became a defense mechanism. She could almost hear the anguished cries coming from his soul, but the worst part was that it felt good. And it felt even better to continue.

"So don't think that you can just come in here and chastise me about how I'm being immature and irresponsible when you can't even make an honest friend by yourself. Because let me tell you—"

He brushed past her, through the portal, and who knows where else. Luna looked at her with an unreadable expression on her face before shaking her head and leaving also. But she didn't care. The inside of her cackled with glee as she realized that after all his teasing and scolding, she had finally struck back against the almighty Chiba Mamoru.

And it felt great.

* * *

It was Friday.

Usagi sat in class, a place where nobody wanted to be, where nobody paid attention, and where everybody wanted to get up and surround the Tokyo Performing Arts Center, where thousands of other people were gathering, and among the people gathering, the police.

Ms. Haruna even kept the radio on dimly, almost afraid to turn her back and miss the exciting broadcast that Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen were going to save the day.

Usagi wondered. She wondered what Luna was doing, what her family was doing, but most of all, what Mamoru was doing. She knew that he had no classes today, so she assumed that he was probably down at the Performing Arts Center scaling the building for any threats.

It had bugged her all night. The entire time, she lay in her bunny bed, tossing and turning in hopes to fall asleep, but the guilt of what she'd said…he probably hated her even more now.

Usagi's grip on her pencil tightened as she doodled in her notebook. Glancing up, she looked out the window to see a surprising amount of people on the streets, and glancing behind she saw a noticeable amount of children absent from her class. Even Naru wasn't there.

Usagi shook her head. Why on earth would anybody go to a place that was going to be attacked, even if they knew that nobody might save them? It was ridiculous, imbecilic, thoughtless…something she would have done about a year ago.

It was at that moment that Ms. Haruna's radio decided to become possessed, and in Usagi's opinion, in need of immediate exorcism.

The words became choppy, the stations began to flip back and forth, and then nothing but static.

The Almighty was not on her side today.

The lights went out, and everybody screamed.

"Class!" Ms. Haruna called over the excited din. "Calm down! It's just a little power shortage."

Usagi would have believed her hand she not sounded so unsure and afraid. Standing up, she walked over to the window, and opened the blinds.

Nothing.

Everything was black, and everything was dark. She could barely even see her own hand in front of her face. It seemed as though someone had doused the fire which was the sun. Smoky the bear would have been proud.

There was a knock on the door, and she could feel everybody in the room jump.

"Is everybody okay in there?"

Thank God, it was just the principal.

Ms. Haruna jogged over to door and opened it. The principal stepped in, whispered something in her ear, and then walked back out, locking the door behind him.

Usagi didn't even have to listen to tell what the principal had just said to her.

The attack had begun, Haruna had been instructed to not let anybody out, and Usagi was locked inside.

Her breathing quickened and her hands clawed at her desk as she sat back down. She needed a plan to get out of there, or as Mamoru said, a lot of people were going to die.

Swallowing, she got up and fumbled her way over to Ms. Haruna's desk, where she noted how even in the dark, the woman looked exceedingly pale.

"Haruna-sensei?" Usagi asked softly, making the woman jolt up to her. "I really have to use the restroom."

"Sit down, Tsukino-san," she whispered harshly. "We're under lockdown."

She couldn't be stuck in here…she just couldn't. It was time to pull on the theatrics.

"But I _really, really_ have to go! I drank two cans of oolong tea this morning!"

Haruna shook her head. "Sit down."

"Please! I can't hold it in much longer! I promise I'll come back! If you don't let me go I'll have an accident."

Haruna sighed, pulling open the drawer of her desk and fumbling for the keys. "Why is it that you always have to go to the restroom whenever something dangerous happens?"

Usagi shrugged innocently, but bit her lip and gasped. "I need to go. Now."

It was like watching Sonic the Hedgehog. Haruna had the door open so quickly, ushering her out the door that Usagi didn't even have time to cheer in her mind. It was swiftly shut behind her and when Usagi heard the click of the lock, she darted down the black hallways, thankful that she had enough practice from all her morning dashes to pinpoint her way around the school even in the dark.

When she reached the front doors, she noted that they were locked.

"Shit," she muttered. "How do I get out now?"

The roof. She could take the rooftops. Dashing up the staircases, she slammed the door to the rooftop open and hastily climbed over the fence so she stood on the ledge of the building.

She had attempted this only once, and that was when they had attacked the kindergarten building in the Minato ward. It was the only time that she had ever tried to hop from rooftop to rooftop while untransformed, and although it turned out successfully, she found that it took up more of her energy.

But she didn't really have a choice then.

Crouching, she pushed her legs with all the strength she had onto the building across the street from the school grounds. Usagi stumbled a bit, but then quickly regained her composure as she bounded from roof to roof, her shoes clacking each time they landed.

And even in the dark, she could hear the screams.

She skidded to a stop on top of what she was positive was the Performing Arts Center, and slowly climbed down the side of the brick building and outside of the front entrance. She could hear all the excited and frightened people screaming and yelling about who knows what, and Usagi found herself retreating into a corner inside of the almost deserted building and tugging at her communicator.

Should she call Mamoru? After what she had said yesterday…would he even pick up?

With guilt tearing at her soul, she flipped open the tiny screen and punched in the black button.

"Mamoru?" she hissed.

She could hear people screaming around him. "Odango? Where are you? Stay at the school; it's too risky to sneak out."

She frowned. "It's a little late for that, because I'm already inside the building. Where are you?"

"Outside," he said gruffly. "They've blocked everything off…wait, how did you get in?"

"The roofs. Scale the outside. You should be able to jump from a nearby building."

She could see his face staring dumbly at the screen. "You got in from the roof? But I haven't even felt you transform!"

Usagi coughed. She had forgotten about that whole factor. "I…wasn't transformed."

Tick tock, the bomb went off.

"You idiot!" he yelled. "You could've gotten yourself killed!"

She was about to argue when there was a deafening roar that seemed to echo throughout the building and shake the whole city. It sounded like a man's voice but was very raspy and deep. After it ended about thirty seconds later, Usagi heard that there wasn't even a single squeak coming from Mamoru's end of the communicator.

"Get out of there," he urged. "I don't know what the hell that was---just get out of there Odango."

And then she heard another voice, a woman's screaming at the top of her lungs. Although many probably didn't hear it outside, it rang familiarly through Usagi's ears.

Mamoru was silent for only a few seconds. "What was that?"

Usagi stood, facing the huge entrance hallway and tiptoeing near the giant doorway.

"Odango, where are you going? Get out of there!"

She ignored him and crept behind the wall, peeking out into the main auditorium.

"Odango, I'm scaling the building, and then we're getting out of here until we come up with a plan. Meet me on the roof," he almost sounded shaken and panicked.

"Mamoru, I have to go in."

"No! You idiot! Get out of there! We'll figure something out, just---"

She flipped the screen shut, and taking a deep breath, Usagi spun around the wall and behind a row of theatre seats, transforming quickly before crawling on her hands and knees through the rows. She could feel her communicator vibrating against her wrist violently, but she ignored it.

How did it come to this? How did she end up in this situation? Mamoru had been right…maybe if she was more mature, she would know what to do. Maybe if she showed up for meetings, she would actually be brave. She felt terrible, like she was bleeding to death on the inside.

One of her pearly white gloves clawed into the back of one of the red plush seats as she started to hyperventilate. Her knees ached from dragging themselves against the marble floor, and Sailor Moon was positive that they were bleeding. The warm blood spilled against the cool marble, and tears began to fall out of her eyes as her shoulders shook.

A sob escaped her lips, and her eyes widened in panic as she took her other hand and clasped it over her mouth. Her eyes closed and she prayed that nobody would find her…yet.

"Somebody…please help! Please---I---help!" Another scream followed, and then there was a cackling that made her want to vomit her breakfast right then and there.

Sailor Moon allowed the tears to fall out of her eyes as the tip of her red boots scraped quietly against the marble.

She was a coward. This was why she couldn't save her brother…Tamotsu…because she was a coward. Because she always hesitated…because she wasn't fit to be a champion of justice. She bit the hand that was covering her lips hard and welcomed the pain as she felt the glove shift beneath her, but not even tear. The stupid suit wouldn't even let her hurt herself!

Sniffling quietly, Sailor Moon stared ahead of herself as she shook her head. What difference did it make whether or not the people in danger were her family or friends? It was her job to save them…but oh, this was not something that she ever wanted to see herself doing. Having to save the people of the earth was one thing…but when she knew them…

"Sailor Moon," a loud, familiar voice rang through the auditorium. She almost stood up and said, "What?" before remembering her position.

"Sailor Moon," the voice repeated, though more serious. "I know that you're in here. Might I say that I am highly impressed? I didn't think that you were going to show up. Though I don't think that your partner fully agrees with you…I don't sense cape-boy in this room."

She said nothing. The man continued. "The original plan of ours was to come here and take down as many civilians as we could…but then another brilliant idea walked along…_literally._"

Her jaw began to tremble and she clutched a hand over her heart.

"Why should we pick the human's off like flies? Why not take a _hostage_? It seemed much more practical to draw you out into the fight, especially since you may even know this person. They look about your age, and we caught them on their way to the restrooms about an hour ago," he drawled.

"So," she heard him clap his hands together, like he was throwing a sales pitch. "How about it Sailor Moon? You can continue to hide, where all of the people in this city will die. Or you can come out and fight, where only a considerable amount of you will die. It's your choice."

Sailor Moon's breath hitched. She didn't expect him to speak on, but he did; only making matters worse.

"I'm sure you're wondering, 'What does he mean that he's going to kill everyone?' Well, you see, I didn't honestly believe that you and Tuxedo Kamen were going to show up today. Forgive me, you have proven me wrong."

Sailor Moon took that moment to flip open her communicator and call Mamoru quickly, pressing the mute button so he wouldn't blow her cover by yelling at her but would still be able to hear everything. She could see his furious face on the tiny screen and it looked like he was shouting at her while he was running.

"As you may remember, I said that if you didn't show up today, I would attack any place in which I please. So, being prepared, I already have a swarm of youma positioned inside the Tokyo Art Museum. It would be a shame to have to call them all back…I thought I'd let them have their fun."

The Art Museum? Why would they do that? They had already attacked there a little over two weeks ago…she had been in the rubble; she had seen, and regrettably felt, the marking carved in the wall!

"And I also have at least six youma positioned on every floor of this building, so no matter where you run, they will catch you. And if you don't come out, I'll have them storm into the crowds outside…wouldn't want to be out there right now. But if you come out right now, I won't kill the hostage, just you."

She heard the whimper of whoever they had dragged on the stage, and Sailor Moon did not want to look into the face of that innocent person. There was a long pause. Did they give up? Did the man know where she was? The room was as silent as space before she heard the clear voice resonate throughout the room.

"Kill her."

She could almost taste whatever youma was up there's grin as the hostage screamed. She couldn't take it anymore.

Sailor Moon bolted up. "Stop!" she screamed, staring worriedly down at the stage.

Three long, dagger-like claws were poised at the hostage's throat, the youma holding it uglier than any single one she had faced.

She could tell that it was female, but it looked stronger than a professional wrestler, with oily orange skin and limp, grassy green hair that fell to its shoulders in a tangled mess. It had no eyes, only indents that seemed to curve into whatever shape the ugly mouth took on. And two thin slits for a nose were added high on the center of her face. It had no ears that she could see, and beneath a pointed chin and a thick, muscular neck was a series of black tattoos that spiraled down the stone armor she was wearing that barely concealed anything, to Sailor Moon's disgust. The youma's teeth looked like they had been carved out of stone, which was exactly what her hands were made of that were positioned at the hostage's neck. But hands was a loose term. They looked like two copies of Edward Scissor Hands' scissor hands…she gulped as she imagined them pointed at her.

And the man, whom she immediately recognized as Zoicite, still donning his sinister smile and smoky grey Shitennou suit, looked like he was going to wave at her and mockingly beckon her towards the stage.

But then, he wasn't standing there anymore. He…evaporated into a cloud of flower petals! She would have laughed, had she not felt the blade of a dagger pressed harshly to her throat.

"Good choice," Zoicite breathed into her ear.

She reached up with her left arm to try and scratch him, claw at him…anything that would get him away from her long enough to attack him. But he caught her wrist and brought it to his face. She felt him brush one fingertip against her communicator before turning to her. Her stomach flipped as his face fell into her hair.

"So this is how you and Tuxedo Kamen always know where each other are…interesting."

It sounded so vile…so sinister. Sailor Moon shivered but she dared not to move for the blade would pierce her throat.

He pressed the mute button, and although she couldn't see the communicator well, Sailor Moon could hear Mamoru furiously shouting into it.

"Odan---Sailor Moon!" he shouted. "What the hell is going on?"

She felt Zoicite's arm shift as he turned the small watch towards his face.

"Well, Tuxie, it would seem that I have caught your beloved." He licked his lips, and Sailor Moon wanted to throw up right then and there. "And believe me, she is much better company than you."

"Let her go," Tuxedo Kamen said quietly, and it seemed even more menacing than if he had shouted it.

She thanked God that Mamoru was at least transformed and Zoicite hadn't seen his face. She inched her foot backwards---far enough to catch the back of Zoicite's foot and kick his leg out from beneath him and escape.

His grasp on her neck tightened, and she felt him roughly wrap his leg around hers, trapping it. She couldn't even attempt it with the other one though because she needed it for balance.

"Nice try, sweetheart."

And although his breath wasn't foul, and it didn't destroy her nostrils, the scent made her toes curl and her right arm that was wrapped around the arm holding the dagger to alleviate the pressure tightened around his as she tried to throw him off of her.

"Zoicite I swear---," Tuxedo Kamen broke off. "This isn't one of your games. Let. Her. Go."

He smiled pleasantly down at the screen. "Sorry, no can do. This girl has been a major pain in the backside…as you have been. But maybe this way I can kill two birds with one stone."

"Fight me then. Just let her and all the other's go."

It wasn't anger or desperation, but a soft, gentle plead. Sailor Moon couldn't believe that this was the man that she had hurt so badly yesterday. She didn't want to believe it. A few tears escaped her eyes; it was something she shouldn't have let past, for Zoicite immediately took a hold on it and motioned the communicator in front of her face, making a mocking, pouting expression himself.

"Ah," he whined. "She's crying Tux-boy. You'd better hurry up."

Zoicite seemed to know Tuxedo Kamen, Sailor Moon noted. Mamoru had once mentioned that he had fought with the Shitennou…he even showed her the scar on his back, but this seemed to go back even further.

"What did you do to her?" Tuxedo Kamen yelled. "What did you do?!"

Zoicite chuckled. "Now, none of that. She's fine. I haven't done anything…yet."

She saw him lower the communicator, and she nearly sobbed when she felt him run a disgustingly cold hand up her thigh and trail it along the side of her body before resting none too innocently on the side of her chest.

Tuxedo Kamen had just seen that. He had just…Sailor Moon's shoulders shook as tears spilled down her face by the bucket loads. She had never felt so humiliated, sickened, frightened, or…angry. She was positively furious.

She could hear Tuxedo Kamen's voice catch in his throat as Zoicite placed the hand on the other side of her hip and massage the skin there. He leant his head down against her neck and nuzzled her collar bone.

"See? I haven't done anything to her…_yet_," he breathed down her neck.

He ginned evilly and the room was filled with angry curses, shouts and footsteps that came from the tiny communicator.

But she didn't really notice, for the way the blade was positioned made her neck lurch towards the stage and meet the eyes of the frightened and desperate hostage below. The familiar voice.

It was just as she had suspected.

It was Naru.

* * *

So, how did you like this chapter, or how did you like Zoictie so far? You'll be seeing a lot of him yet, and stay tuned for the next chapter, for soon, another familiar character will jump into the mix. Tell me what you thought, for criticism is constructive and builds strong bones, just like milk.

REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's the button on the bottom, but it says it more kindly than I do.


	9. Chapter 9

Oh gosh this story has been gone for a REALLY long time! I feel ashamed! Well, here it is, as promised:  
polished and proper enough to be posted. And as many of you have been requesting me about a new  
Senshi....well you're going to have to read to find out! Ha, well other than that, this is going to be the  
last post for about two months, because this story is currently packing it's bags and switching residency  
for a little bit. But I will continue to post up drabbles for A Hundred Weeds to Pull and will be working on  
a newer, more fluffier story that I hope to have posted up by summertime!

I would like to thank all the people who have reviewed this story, for you all inspire me to keep on writing!

But enough with my ramblings...enjoy.

* * *

Never Walk it Off

By sakanascales876

Chapter 9

* * *

Luna stretched her paws and swirled into a little ball on Mamoru's couch. It was so nice that he was finally letting her back inside his apartment again. Well, it was so nice that he wasn't around so that she could sneak into his apartment…again.

It wasn't that she hated the Tsukino's; she loved that house to death! Ikuko _always_ pampered her, giving her the food she wanted, letting her roam about the house wherever and whenever she pleased…but there was always a problem.

She couldn't turn into her human self at all.

At Mamoru's she could transform, eat all his food, catch up on her favorite soap operas…anything she wanted. But he never wanted her there. That boy disliked her with a passion. For a good reason too, she mused, giving out a baleful chuckle and morphing into her human form.

As she sat down and flipped through the channels to watch her favorite hospital show, her communicator rang.

_Speak of the devil,_ she thought, but then quickly remembered what that day was.

Oh shit.

She flipped open the lid and focused as Tuxedo Kamen's haggard face came up on the screen. Was he…running?

"Did the attack start yet?" Luna said.

"Yes! Zoicite's taken a hostage inside and the Odango is in there too!" he huffed. "But that's the thing…

Luna blinked. "Zoicite? She's going to fight _Zoicite alone?_Kamen, why in the hell aren't you in there with her?"

Crud. This was not supposed to happen! If the Senshi died now before they even found…her, they would all be screwed. Not good, Luna thought. If things were going to run as smoothly as she had planned, then an unexpected death would not do well, that is, until she decided that one of them was _the one._

"I'm trying to get in there now Luna!" Tuxedo Kamen bellowed. "But that's not the problem! Zoicite said that there's another attack back at the museum, and I can't get there. He has Odango captive."

Double crud. Luna paused for a moment. Maybe she could…it was a stretch, and she wasn't positive, but she definitely knew of someone who could help.

"Alright," Luna muttered quickly. "I'll go stop it. Get Usagi-chan and get out of there. Mamoru, I know you. Don't let him get to you. I know what he's done, but today is not the day for you to play avenger."

He didn't respond.

"Mamoru-kun?" Luna called to the communicator. "Tuxedo Kamen?"

"Get to the museum. I'll contact you when everything's---_if _everything's fine," he said curtly, and the link went dead.

Luna shook her head. That boy…she just wanted to throw something. Breathing heavily, she darted to the balcony and made her way onto the roof, bounding from building to building towards the school. He was going to get himself killed one of these days, but she couldn't worry about that right then.

It was time to awaken another ally.

_Kino Makoto, _Luna thought devilishly_. Here I come. _

* * *

Sailor Moon took in a raspy breath and tilted her eyes toward the ceiling. Naru. How could she…fight in front of her best friend? Even though the intelligent red head didn't know who she was it was still going to be difficult. What if she gave herself away? What if Naru was killed?

She blinked. Why was she thinking of that when she didn't even have a way to escape the hold that Zoicite had over her?

"Tell you what," he crooned softly. "I won't kill you if you give me the Maboroshi no Ginzushou."

Sailor Moon blanked. Why was everybody suddenly bringing up a crystal of some sort? Chewing nervously on her lip, she took a deep breath.

"What if I don't want to give it to you?"

He took his human killing, power surging, womanizing hands and grasped her chin tightly enough that she winced and thrashed it down so she was facing the stage.

"She dies."

The heroine gulped as she met the scared, unknowing eyes of her best friend.

Zoicite pursed his lips and popped them before leaning down and resting his chin against her shoulder. "So, what's it going to be Sailor Moon?"

She bravely wrenched her chin away from his hand and glared into his seaweed eyes.

"Why do you want it?"

He chuckled. "The same reason that everybody else wants it, my dear. The power to destroy a planet contained in a gemstone the size of a thimble."

"So that's what you're planning?" Sailor Moon whispered. "To just kill off all the humans?"

"You could always join us, you know. My queen may be a bit angry with you for causing so much trouble for us but I'm sure she would be merciful to someone of our kind."

"Your queen?"

He gasped. "I-shit! Shut up! You're not supposed to be the one asking questions!"

Sailor Moon quivered in fear. One minute he was playful and the next…hostile? Mamoru was right; this guy was a nut job. The dagger pressed against her throat tightened, and she was sure that if any more pressure was applied, it would draw blood.

"Now," he said menacingly. "You're going to give me the Maboroshi no Ginzushou, or at least tell me where it is, or the girl dies, understood?"

"I-don't have it!" she gasped.

He paused and she felt his grip on the dagger slacken to the point where if he had moved his thumb, it would have cluttered to the ground.

Sailor Moon took the chance. Resolutely, she quickly slid her head to the side, narrowly avoiding the blade, grabbed his arm and flipped him over her shoulder and onto the floor before he even had a chance to blink.

Without looking back, she vaulted over the second floor of the theatre and winced as her ankles stung and her heels clacked as she hit the floor. She darted faster than all the times she had had to run from a love struck Umino put together. She even ran faster than she had when she had rushed past the security guard when she went in to find Tamotsu over a year ago.

She couldn't lose Naru…she just couldn't.

Zoicite seemed to regain his footing, for she heard his breathless shout from behind her. "Kill her! Kill the girl!"

Sailor Moon was nearing the stage when the youma let out a spine shattering cackle and raised its stony claws towards Naru's neck.

Time seemed to be stuck in a never ending ice age as the claws swung rapidly through the air and toward her best friend's throat.

Both Sailor Moon and Naru screamed as the heroine reached the stage. A clang resounded through the air, and the only thing the lone Senshi heard was the deafening thump of a body hitting the floor.

* * *

Makoto silently scrubbed her hands at the sink in pitch darkness. She had been the only one the teacher had let use the bathroom and that was probably because he was so damn afraid of her that he thought she could snap him like a child's glow stick if he refused.

She grimaced.

Staring into the mirror that was so dark she couldn't even see her own reflection, she splashed some water onto her face and grabbed a paper towel, quickly drying her hands and leaning back against the marble ledge of the sink.

She sighed.

Was she really that terrifying? Makoto tried to be nice; she really did. With all honesty, she really couldn't see why people seemed to fear her so much. Damn rumors. She got into one fight. _One._ And she had been defending some seventh grader from a rich kid with a pocket knife, and just for that, she gets labeled as some ruthless thug?

For the first time since her parents had died, Makoto felt like crying. They were all so rude to her. She had no friends, no family…she didn't even have someone she could talk to. Well, there was always Usagi-san…but why would one of the friendliest people in the school like her out of all people?

It was so annoying. Everybody just seemed to buzz around Usagi and whenever she tried talking to her in any other place than detention, she ended up getting glared at and whispered about.

"FML," she grumbled.

Suddenly, Makoto felt a harsh wind flit throughout the bathroom, and suddenly, she realized she wasn't alone anymore.

"Who's there?" she called out firmly. Oh well. If people were going to think she was some kind of mobster or whatever, then why not act like one?

"Child, don't speak to me in that tone. _Ever_."

The voice sounded semi-young, feminine, nagging, and a tinge of I'm-the-boss-you-do-as-I-say-because-I'm-older-and-smarter-than-you.

And she didn't like it one bit.

"I can talk to you however I want," Makoto spat defiantly. "But it would help to know who in the hell I'm speaking with."

She knew she was overstepping her boundaries, and she didn't care. She kind of felt a twinge of regret though, considering that it was probably a teacher that was going to detention her ass until graduation for those comments alone.

"What are you? An answering machine?"

Someone with a backbone? Makoto respected that, but only a small bit until she figured out that she was indeed being insulted.

A thin, wispy stand of light seemed to flutter towards the ceiling before illuminating the entire bathroom, and Makoto winced at the sudden light exposure.

'Well that was incredibly strange,' she thought, staring around at the empty bathroom. 'I wonder if the power's back on in the city and Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen saved the day or whatever.'

Glancing around the room, she wasn't surprised to see nobody occupying the room with her.

She shrugged. They must have gotten scared when they realized it was the freaky girl from class five threatening them. She bit her tongue; no surprises there.

And then she looked to the floor to see a black cat with the most paranormal looking, twilight red vampire eyes that she had ever seen. She winced and took a step back. That little thing was probably some kind of creature ready to drag her off to Hell.

Oi; She hated warm weather.

"Hello," she asked to the room, drumming her fingers against the counter and staring the cat down as the words echoed through the room. "Is anybody in here?"

She frowned. Did that cat just—_just_ _roll its eyes at her?_

"I think that I'm in here child, and I think that the sooner you accept the fact that I'm a talking cat, the sooner we can get down to business."

Holy sushi in a fish market. The cat was _talking_ to her. _Talking!_

'Show no weakness,' she thought, and made it look like she could care less.

"Okay," she said slowly. "So you're a talking…cat?"

The cat seemed to be satisfied with this answer. "Yes, and I will not be addressed as cat or lady anymore, no matter what form I may be in. You are to call me Luna."

Form? This thing could change into other stuff? That made her a bit nervous. What if she turned into some kind of giant spider and bit her head off?

Keeping her cool and suppressing her fear, Makoto took a bold step forward.

"Alright then, _Luna_. What is it that you want from-er, me? And can all animals talk and stuff?"

Luna shook her head and stared hardly into Makoto's daunting shamrock shaded eyes. "No, only I can talk. I don't really have a lot of time to explain this, but I need your help."

Makoto guffawed. Her help? Okay, where the hell were the hidden cameras and the annoying spokesman with the strange voice?

Luna was glaring up at her, but Makoto stood her ground.

"You don't believe me," Luna uttered, scrutinizing Makoto from the side of her eyes.

"I don't believe you," she countered, crossing her arms over her chest, leaning back against the sink and staring coolly back at the feline.

The cat curled her teeth into a smirk and then there wasn't a cat standing before her anymore. There was a woman with long, black hair curtaining down her back as she stood in a canary yellow dress that reached a couple of inches above her knees. She still had the same eyes that screamed, 'I'm a homicidal murderer and I'm going to make you my next victim,' but now she had cherry red lips that curled into a menacing smile that boasted her long fangs.

This woman did not look earthly at all.

Makoto gasped and took a step back, cursing in her mind that she only rammed into the marble counter. There was no escape if that crazy cat lady tried to claw open her neck.

Then she appeared next to Makoto out of nowhere, making her shriek and back away, but Luna grasped her arm, leaning up to her ear and placing something in Makoto's clammy hands.

"Do you believe me yet?"

She shimmied away and kicked Luna from her, relishing in the thud she had heard when her foot came in contact with the cat-woman's stomach, sending her flying across the room.

Makoto nearly snickered as Luna fell to her knees, clutching her abdomen and…_smirking_ at her?

"Yes," she panted. "You are definitely her."

Makoto exhaled through gritted teeth. "What do you mean, 'I'm her'? I'm nobody but Kino Makoto, and it's going to stay that way."

Luna ignored the threatening tone in her voice and stood, slowly regaining her composure and daintily dusting herself off. "I see…but it wouldn't seem that way anymore child."

In less than a second, Makoto was thrown against the side of a stall with Luna painfully grasping her arms. There was no longer a coy, playful look in her eyes, but a serious, almost angry look. She gulped.

Luna reached up and snatched whatever she had put into Makoto's hand earlier and waved it in front of her face.

"You are not just Kino Makoto, and you never have been. And this pen is all the proof you need in order to realize that."

It was no larger than any other pen that Makoto had ever used, but perhaps a smidgeon bigger. The handle was a green the shade of her eyes, and the rest seemed to be made of complete gold. On the top of the cap, there was an ovalish ring, and on that ring was a strange looking number four.

She would have laughed if Luna wasn't staring her down so ferociously.

The arms encaging her wrists let go, and Luna took a step back from her. Makoto gaped at her, and the woman stared right back before gently grasping her hand and placing the pen inside of it.

"Hold it up and shout, 'Jupiter Power, Make up!'"

Makoto glanced down at the pen and gradually raised it up.

"Jupiter Power," she said weakly. "Make up!"

An explosion of electricity seemed to zoom through her veins and shoot into her very soul. That itself sounded painful, but it actually wasn't. It was exhilarating. She actually found that she was changing.

She felt stronger, faster, more powerful…more confident.

And then the strange euphoria ended, but the power inside of her remained and seemed to lock itself into her very essence and throw away the key.

She saw her reflection and she liked it.

Makoto looked just like…Sailor Moon! Or somewhat like her. She was in the same sort of outfit, albeit it was a different color, with green heeled combat looking boots, a short, silky skirt, a pink bow centered on her chest attached to a green collar and choker, and a long pink bow and ribbon placed above the back of the skirt, cascading a bit past her upper thigh.

She turned to Luna, who was looking at her with a knowing smirk.

"That doesn't look like Kino Makoto to me," she said.

Yes, Makoto noted; it looked even better.

* * *

Sailor Moon collapsed to her knees, her teeth clamping down onto her fingers as she screamed and cried. Naru was…Naru was…

She looked up.

Alive.

The youma was on the ground, but nobody else was there. What in the hell?

She heard Zoicite from behind her shout in outrage. "Where is she? Where did she go?"

Someone from behind her clasped her shoulders and Sailor Moon shrieked and struggled.

"It's okay," a warm voice said urgently into her ear. "It's just me. It's just me."

Tuxedo Kamen engulfed her into a hug and she threw her arms tightly around his waist, crying into his tuxedo jacket.

"She's dead!" Sailor Moon wept. "He killed her! I—I tried, a-and she's dead!"

Tuxedo Kamen stood them both up and leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Osaka-san is fine. I directed her out of the room just now. She's fine Odango."

Sailor Moon felt somewhat relieved, but she couldn't stop crying. That had been too close. _Way_ too close.

A lone person began to clap from the second theatre floor, making her wince as they both turned to see Zoicite sitting nonchalantly on the ledge with his legs crossed.

How in the hell did this guy go from yelling in anger in one second back to his calm and relaxed self?

"You always seem to interrupt the best part, don't you Tux-Boy?" he drawled.

Tuxedo Kamen abruptly let go of her arms, and as much as she hated to admit it, she missed the warmth.

"Leave everybody else out of this, Zoicite. Your fight is with me."

The man with the sandy brown pony tail yawned and sighed a bit too dramatically. "What, no 'hello'? Not even a 'How have you been'? My, my, Tuxie, your mother and father haven't taught you manners very well, have they?"

He growled. "You seemed to make damn well sure that they didn't Zoicite."

Crouching, Tuxedo Kamen leapt up to the second level merely a few yards from where Zoicite was perched, and Sailor Moon felt very alone and exposed.

Zoicite disappeared into a cloud of pink flower petals and reappeared in the same spot, except this time he was standing.

"I didn't think that you'd want to fight me again…especially after what happened last time."

Tuxedo Kamen glared at him, but not at all in the playful way he did to her when he teased her.

"I've improved my fighting skills since then Zoicite. It's been over two years."

Sailor Moon did not like the harshness in his voice, and she especially didn't like that Zoicite suddenly wielded a crystalline sword in his hand, and that Tuxedo Kamen suddenly had his sword also.

Zoicite then turned to her. "But just so we're not interrupted…" he raised his hand and a shot of purple electricity, the same she had seen when she touched the mark on the side of the museum, careened out of his arm and into the air, exploding into a tiny mess but still shaking the entire building.

And then she felt them…around ten of them materializing around her and closing her into a circle. Her eyes danced to Tuxedo Kamen's, and his stared back at hers with a panicked and twisted look in them.

He mouthed, "Run!" but she already knew it was too late.

The fight had begun.

Zoicite threw out his arm and an explosion of tiny crystals were shot towards Tuxedo Kamen, who leaped into the air and landed upon another row of theatre seats, showing no expression as he looked back to the gaping hole in the wall he had just been standing in front of. Hole was an understatement though. It looked like that entire half of the building had just gone down.

Sailor Moon directed her attention back to the youma, all whom looked like they were ready to claw her head off. Each one had an ugly grey skin that was stretched thinly over their thin, boney limbs wearing large, billowing cloaks that seemed so wispy that they looked as though they were made of steam. Their equally pail, pointed faces only had thick tangerine eyes that only seemed to show expression when their face wrinkled, and the bald skin over their heads made them look like decaying bodies.

Sailor Moon cringed with disgust and the youma suddenly froze.

And for the second time that day, the lights went out, except they flickered back on in a matter of seconds.

Tuxedo Kamen was still furiously fighting with Zoicite, who at one point had lost his sword so they were both fighting with their fists, and the youmas circling her were nowhere to be seen.

Well…shit.

Two grey hands clamped on to her ankles and they slowly pulled her down towards the floor, her shrieking all the while and flailing her arms, trying to jump away.

"Sailor Moon!" Tuxedo Kamen cried as he threw his gloved fist towards Zoicite who in return ducked and shoved out the palm of his hand, blasting Tuxedo Kamen over the side of the second floor.

He didn't move.

"T-Tuxedo Kamen?" she called into the empty air, ignoring Zoicite's smirk of utter triumph.

"Get up you baka!" she screamed hysterically at him as her waist sank through the floor. "Bastard! Get up!"

Zoicite laughed jarringly from his perch on the second floor ledge, grinning down at heap of black that was Tokyo's favorite hero.

As Usagi's head sunk through the floor, bawling as tears sunk from her eyes, her gut-wrenching sobs permeating through the empty air as she found herself in a state of nothingness. The world seemed to go black, but she didn't faint.

It was like floating in the middle of space.

Her eyes were becoming heavy, and she wanted nothing more than to wake up from this nightmare and find herself fourteen again. Her brother would be over for cookies, monsters wouldn't be threatening the safety of the world, and she would just be a carefree, normal teenager that she had always dreamt of being.

"Just give up…" a gentle, low voice rumbled through the empty void. "Everything would just be so much easier if you gave up."

Yes, she should give up. If she did, then it wouldn't hurt anymore…she could finally be free!

"You could go back to being a normal girl," the voice whispered, and an invisible hand coiled around a strand of floating hair and tucked it behind her ear. "You could have everything you ever dreamed of."

That sounded nice…but what if Mamoru was still in trouble?

"He's fine…everybody's fine. Forget them all. The only thing they ever do is criticize you anyway."

Anger clenched in her stomach. The voice was right. Everybody always criticized her, especially Mamoru. Who cares what happens to him? They could all just leave her alone.

She found herself drifting away.

"_Sailor Moon!"_ a painstakingly familiar voice sliced through the nothing. _"Don't give up! Whatever you do, don't fall asleep!"_

A vicious snarl surrounded her, and Sailor Moon couldn't blame them. How dare they tell her she couldn't fall asleep? She didn't want to go back; it was too relaxing there. It was away from all the fighting and the crime and the death…it was like a peaceful heaven.

The voice sounded through the void again. _"You have to wake up and get out of here Sailor Moon! If you slip away, you'll fall into their nightmare forever! Don't listen to them!"_

The first voice scoffed. "Are you going to listen to them Sailor Moon? They cause all your anger and hurt. If you let go of them, you could finally be free."

Freedom. Yes…that was what she wanted. She was done being a Senshi of Justice. The world could find another Sailor Moon to protect them.

"_Sailor Moon! Tuxedo Kamen needs you! This _planet _needs you! You have to fight for them!"_

But she didn't want to fight! She wanted to go back to being a normal teenage girl! Why couldn't they just leave her alone? She was fine until that damn cat had showed up and ruined her life! The only thing she ever did was give! Why couldn't she receive any of her life back?

A dark energy along with a white pulsating light filled her mind, and Sailor Moon screamed and clutched her head from the pain.

"Wouldn't you rather just live in a world free of evil and hate? You could be so happy…" the voice cooed.

"_They're lying! Sailor Moon, snap out of it!" _

She felt a sting in her cheek, and a few tears slipped out from her eyes involuntarily. She didn't know which one to choose!

"_You need to fight! The world still needs you to fight for them! If you don't fight, then Naru's in danger! Your family will be in danger! Mamoru will be in danger! They'll kill off everybody like they did to your brother!"_

Usagi's blood began to simmer like grease in a pancake pan. Her fists clenched and her body shook in anger as hot tears began to fall down her milky face. They were the ones who killed him! She hadn't gotten revenge yet for his death! She _had_ to go back and kill them all! And by God she was going to make the Dark Kingdom pay for the utter hell they had put her through.

The deaths she'd had to witness.

Two bony grey hands appeared out of the black atmosphere and wrapped themselves around her neck, squeezing so hard that she thought her neck was about to shrivel like a raison. She kicked and scratched at the invisible being but the grip wouldn't lessen no matter what she seemed to do.

So she did the only thing she could think of; she screamed.

It wasn't one of her patented wailing shrieks that she let out whenever and wherever she felt like it. It was an all out holy-crap-get-the-hell-away-from-me-somebody-help-I'm-being-murdered scream that was louder than a fire truck, a cannon shot, and one of those fireworks that Shingo always brought home that when lit it cried like a banshee.

The jewels on her odango beeped and flashed red three times before a white ring circled around them once, and all hell broke loose.

Her scream was multiplied by at least twelve times and even the empty space she was trapped in seemed to rumble and shake before white cracks appeared in the distance.

One crack grew into another, and then another, and so on so forth before the entire space was filled with them.

They shattered, and she fell.

Well, it was more like she floated, because soon after that, she found that she was gently floating down through the ceiling of the theatre and in a moment her heels clicked against the floor as she landed on dainty feet.

It seemed that Mamoru was back on his feet, blasting Zoicite with a golden light that appeared from his hands. Zoicite dodged it easily and hopped from row to row, every now and then disappearing into a cloud of flowers and reappearing behind Tuxedo Kamen and attacking him from behind. He easily dodged it and hopped over to where Sailor Moon was stationary.

"What are you doing?" he hissed. "Get out of here!"

Zoicite aimed a kick towards his stomach and Tuxedo Kamen grabbed his foot and shoved him backwards so hard that he actually flew through the wall. Sailor Moon gaped.

He grasped her shoulder quickly and frantically met her eyes. "Are you alright? I saw those youma pull you through the floor—I'm sorry I couldn't get there."

She still couldn't believe and was horrified for yelling at him the day before. Why was it that whenever they were in battle, he was actually kind and caring? Well, maybe not always kind, but he did seem to care.

A sickening crunch resounded through the room and both of them turned towards Zoicite who had broken through the rubble and began to brush himself off.

"I didn't expect to see you back here in one piece Sailor Moon," he said. "I'd say I'm impressed but I'm still a bit ticked at your boyfriend for smacking me through the wall."

Sailor Moon was positive that her mouth fell open in synch with Tuxedo Kamen's.

"We're not---we can't'," she stuttered.

Mamoru coughed into his fist. "Um…we are not dating. Not even a fraction of an millimeter close to that."

There goes Mister Kind and Caring. Nope, she did not feel guilty at all anymore. And he didn't have to say it so cruelly! A pinch of anger and a dash of something else spread through Sailor Moon's stomach as her fists clenched at her sides.

Zoicite tsked and shrugged, wind milling one arm to stretch it and slowly taking some steps forward.

"That's too bad," he said in a derisive tone. "I'm sure the tabloids would have just loved to see you two together."

A blush spread across her face as she imaged them on the cover of one of the magazines in the kiosks she passed by every morning. Well, they already were on them, but not in _that _way. Ew, she couldn't even imagine her and Mamoru together like that…it was disgusting!

She glanced up to see his skin a tinted red also, but that was probably because he was fighting so hard. She almost laughed at the thought. Mamoru? Blushing? Impossible, improbable…outrageous!

Zoicite was walking toward them, his crystal sword materializing in his hand again.

"Well, Tuxedo Kamen, Sailor Moon. Not that this hasn't been fun, but I believe that I have other places to be, and considering that neither of you are in any condition to fight…let's just make this quick."

Not in any condition to fight? What was he smoking? Sailor Moon felt perfectly fine! She glanced over to Tuxedo Kamen, and for the first time, she noticed that his side was drenched in red, and she had to stifle a yelp.

He was hurt, and he didn't say anything! Why in the hell…she wanted to kick something. Damn all men with their pride!

Wait…what the heck did he mean by neither of them could fight? She was perfectly fine! That bastard was…making fun of her!

She didn't want to cry. She didn't want to punch him, and she didn't even start to yell.

She screamed.

The jewels on her odango lit up again and the walls began to shake.

"What in the hell are you doing?" Tuxedo Kamen shouted over the din, covering his bloody hands over his ears.

Zoicite growled and staggered backwards before disappearing in his usual way: flower petals.

Tuxedo Kamen put his hands on her shoulders and shook them until Sailor Moon stopped screaming. His frantic eyes seemed to shake back and forth more frantically than his head.

"Please stop," he panted. "I have no clue how the hell you're going that, but please cease from destroying my eardrums."

Sailor Moon inhaled shakily and allowed him to rest his head upon her shoulder while he closed his eyes and seemed to rest.

"You need to fix up that wound," she said awkwardly.

He shook his head. "It'll heal."

"Mamoru," she said exasperatedly. "You really need to get that thing checked out before you bleed to death." The last part sounded a bit more panicked than the rest of the sentence, and she prayed he didn't notice.

"I'll be fine," he said, lifting up on hand to cough. "Let's just get out of here and back to my apartment so I can patch this up."

Sailor Moon nodded wearily and closed her eyes, feeling refreshed as her bones seemed to unravel as ribbons fluttered across her body and she found herself back to Usagi once more. She glanced up to see Mamoru staring dazedly into her eyes before blinking a few times a turning away.

She blushed, offering him a shoulder to use for support.

"No thanks," he mumbled before turning and making his way towards the exit. Usagi rolled her eyes and followed him on wobbly knees. It was a wonder that he wasn't carrying _her_ yet!

Mumbling, she rushed past Mamoru, who had stopped dead in his tracks, staring dumbly at the doorway. Noticing the lack of footsteps and the comforting warmth behind her, Usagi paused and wondered despairingly if she was going to turn around to see her dead, bloody companion shriveled on the floor saturated in blood. She turned, sighing in relief to see him standing stationary, before walking back over to him and snapping her fingers in front of his eyes.

"Baka," she called. "What's the matter with you now? You look like you've seen a ghost."

He didn't say anything, but he grasped the back of her neck with surprisingly warm hands and turned her head towards the door.

This time, she did gasp.

Standing in the doorway was an absolutely hurt and furious looking girl who was clutching the side paneling somewhat uncertainly, wondering whether she should walk in or not.

And again, it was Naru.

* * *

Gasp! Oh no's!

Well, I hope you enjoyed it! I will post the next chapter as soon as I can!

Please review!!!!!!!!

-Fishyscales ;)


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